AUSTIN, Texas — The search for a missing Austin-area Army veteran is now a murder investigation in North Carolina.
Clinton “Clint” Bonnell, who is originally from Dripping Springs, was reported missing in Fayetteville, North Carolina, in January.
About a month after his disappearance, the Cumberland County Sheriff’s Office said it received a call about a body in a pond just outside of Fayetteville. According to investigators, the body couldn’t be identified due to its condition when it was recovered from the pond.
On March 28, DNA collected by investigators determined the body was Bonnell’s. Shortly after, Bonnell’s wife, 50-year-old Shana Cloud, was arrested and charged with his murder and concealing his death.
What happened to Clint Bonnell?
Authorities said Bonnell was last seen leaving the gym on Jan. 27 but that he never made it to class at Methodist University. That’s also when Cloud said she last saw her husband after they left home in separate cars.
Family members said Bonnell took his physical assistant program “very seriously” and that he was not suicidal, which made his disappearance more out of character.
According to WFMY News, the next day, deputies found his car, wallet and keys during a search of his home. Cloud declined to file a missing person’s report for her husband.
A few days later, deputies found Bonnell’s laptop and bookbag, both of which were found with “projectile damage.” Around that time, Bonnell’s girlfriend filed a missing person’s report.
After obtaining records from Bonnell’s devices, it was revealed that Bonnell planned to divorce Cloud before his disappearance. Deputies said Cloud also admitted to confronting Bonnell about a note from his girlfriend.
Deputies said Bonnell’s body was found with no arms or legs.