The victim’s Labradoodle led police to the crime scene, the killer who shot her and burned the remains: DA

According to a Press release Derek Daigneault, 29, of Wichita, Kansas, was sentenced to life in prison Thursday for the April 2023 murder of his cousin Mandy Reynolds, 26, whose body was found burning in a field in Robinson, Texas.

“As I told the jury, if they knew nothing about Derek Daigneault other than what he did to Mandy Rose Reynolds – shooting her in the head, driving her body here to McLennan County and setting her on fire like a piece of trash – “If that’s all they knew about him, that alone would have been enough to justify a life sentence,” McLennan County Assistant District Attorney Ryan Calvert said in a statement after the trial, according to a local CBS affiliate. KWTX.

“But when we got to the punishment phase, the jury learned that he had been in trouble his entire life, that he was a multiple convicted felon, that he had previously served time in prison for violent offenses in Kansas, and that they had even learned “That he had shot another individual as a juvenile,” he added of Daigneault. “He is simply an extremely violent individual and cannot be trusted with the safety of this or any other community. Therefore, we believed that life was the only just sentence.”

In April 2023, Robinson police found a burning body “burned beyond recognition” while responding to a report of a “brush fire” on Heston Circle, as noted in Friday’s press release from the McLennan County District Attorney’s Office.

Authorities said they saw a white dog near the crime scene.

“There was a white dog nearby that frantically barked at officers and refused to leave the area of ​​the body, but also refused to allow police to capture it,” the release said. “The next morning, after the body was removed, a citizen found the dog sitting in the spot where the burning body had lain the night before.”

“This citizen notified Robinson Animal Control, who then discovered that the dog, named Titan, was microchipped and belonged to Mandy Rose Reynolds,” the release continued.

Police said they suspected the body was Reynolds, which led officers to her apartment in San Marcos. They discovered that it was “completely empty and all of her belongings had been removed” and her car, a black Honda Accord, was nowhere to be found.

According to the McLennan County District Attorney’s Office, police tracked Reynolds’ Honda to Wichita, Kansas. Wichita police found Reynolds’ vehicle and attempted to stop it, which reportedly led to a high-speed chase in which the driver crashed into another vehicle before fleeing the scene.

Police captured and arrested the man, identified as Daigneault, Reynolds’ cousin, according to the news release. Inside the vehicle, officers found a handgun on the driver’s seat.

The medical examiner identified Reynolds’ body based on dental records, the release said. According to the autopsy, Reynolds’ cause of death was determined to be a gunshot wound to the head. Police said her body was found in a burned large plastic container. A bullet found at the crime scene matched the pistol found in Daigneault’s – Reynolds’ – Honda.

As noted in the news release, San Marcos police found surveillance footage from a Walmart that showed Daigneault purchasing a “large plastic container identical to the one in which Reynolds’ body was burned, a shovel and a gasoline can.” The video also reportedly showed him driving away from the store while Titan “poked his head out the car window.”

Police later found the items missing from Reynolds’ home in the trunk of an abandoned truck, according to the release.

“The key to this case was a heroic and loyal dog named Titan and the extraordinary cooperation between law enforcement agencies in multiple jurisdictions and states. This combination has brought Mandy justice and safety from a violent and dangerous criminal,” said Calvert and ADA Alyssa Killin in a statement noted in the release.

Daigneault is a nine-time convicted felon, according to KWTX. The outlet reported that Reynolds’ family and Daigneault got into an argument during his sentencing.

According to the outlet, Reynolds’ mother, older brother and stepfather gave victim impact statements. According to KWTX, as Reynolds’ brother spoke on the witness stand, Daigneault shouted across the courtroom, accusing his cousin of a crime. Although the judge reportedly intervened and told Daigneault not to speak, he allegedly did not listen and continued to yell at Reynolds’ brother in an attempt to get Daigneault to be escorted out of the courtroom.

After leaving the courtroom, Daigneault’s family members – including his brother-in-law, mother and sister – got into a confrontation with Reynolds’ family, with Daigneault’s brother-in-law eventually being handcuffed after he hit one of Reynolds’ relatives on theirs, according to KWTX Side of the courtroom. He was later released.