INDEPENDENCE, Kan. (AP) A 41-year-old Independence man has been charged with first-degree murder in connection with the fatal stabbing of his 35-year-old girlfriend.
The Independence Daily Reporter says Russell McQueen Arndt was arrested early Monday in the death of Rebecca Ann Whittley.
Montgomery County prosecutor Larry Markle says the stabbing death occurred sometime over the weekend, but Whittley’s body wasn’t found until 2:30 a.m. Monday when officers went to the couple’s home to check on her.
Earlier that night Arndt was picked up in the northern part of the county and told deputies his girlfriend may have been injured at their residence.
Arndt was being held on $1 million bond. The Southeast Kansas Public Defender’s office has been appointed to represent him, but nobody was available Tuesday to discuss his case.
