Pensacola detectives arrested Wells on March 18 and charged him with the slaying of Tonya McKinley, 23, whose body was found before dawn on New Years Day 1985. Wells, who was living in Pensacola at the time of his arrest, was identified after Parabon NanoLabs, a Virginia-based company working with the Pensacola Police Department and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, ran a DNA sample obtained from the scene of the crime through an open-source genealogy database and identified several different people believed to be distant cousins of the suspect. Detectives in California used the same method to identify and arrest Joseph James DeAngelo, a suspect in the Golden State Killer cases, in April 2018. More than anything, Renee said, Tonya loved her then-18-month-old son, Timothy Davidson Jr., who family members affectionately referred to as Timbo when he was a child. View Dan Rowdy Wells's record in Pensacola, FL including current phone number, address, relatives, background check report, and property record with Whitepages. The arrest on Wednesday is the oldest cold-case arrest in Pensacola history. He was held without bond at Escambia County Jail and made his court appearance the following morning, where he professed his innocence. No suspects had been publicly named. However, he was found dead inhis cell at the Escambia County Jail in Florida on April 2, 2020. Years later, thanks to advances in DNA testing, all of the evidence was identified as being from the same person, but no matches were ever found in the national DNA database. From there, Pensacola police, FDLE and Parabon constructed a family tree, starting with the distant relatives, that eventually led them to identify Wells as a suspect. Hes now charged with first-degree murder, and first-degree sexual battery. Law enforcement officials were able to construct a family tree, beginning with the distant relatives, that ultimately led them to identify Daniel as a suspect. The arrest on Wednesday is the oldest cold-case arrest in Pensacola history. He wasn't going to ever just say what he did on his own., "Nothing could ever make up for losing my mom, but at least now we know what happened to her. Powerful social search locates profiles on social networks, dating sites, online shopping, web forums, music platforms, etc. Tonya Ethridge McKinley was 23 years old and had an 18-month-old son waiting for her at home when she was killed in the early-morning hours of Jan. 1, 1985, in Pensacola. She had last been seen at a Pensacola bar shortly after the start of the new year. Police arrested 57-year-old Daniel Leonard Wells (Escambia County Jail) A 57-year-old man has been arrested 35 years after the murder of a young mother in Florida. daniel leonard wells pensacola daniel leonard wells pensacola. Top Result for Daniel Wells in Pensacola, FL 1 The best result we found for your search is Daniel Ray Wells age 50s in Fairhope, AL. After 35 years, an Escambia County man has been charged with murdering a woman in Pensacola. IE 11 is not supported. Daniel Leonard Wells, 57, was responsible, cops say, according to The Pensacola News Journal. I'm positive of that.". He was set for a court appearance in the case on April 8 at 8:30 a.m. McKinley was last seen alive around 1:30 a.m. at Darryls Bar & Grille in Pensacola, and in the early-morning hours of New Years Day her body was found in an empty lot at the corner of Peacock Drive and Creighton Road, just one block off Scenic Highway. . On Wednesday, 35 years later, Pensacola police made an arrest in the case: Daniel Leonard Wells, 57, is facing charges of first-degree murder and first-degree sexual battery. Uncover details about birth, marriage, and divorce. Phone & Email (4) All Addresses (7) Family (3) Daniel Leonard Wells, 57, was found hanged in his cell at the Escambia County Jail early Thursday morning, according to the sheriff's office. It was just a normal New Years Eve.. According to the arrest report, there is a greater than 1 in 700 billion chance that the DNA from the crime scene is a match to anyone other than Wells. "(Tonya) can rest now," Renee said after being told of Wells' arrest. Daniel Leonard Wells, the defendant charged in her death, was found dead in his cell at the Escambia County Jail in Florida. UNLOCK PROFILE. Wells was being charged with first-degree murder and first-degree sexual battery and was scheduled to be in court on April 8 for his first hearing in the case. He is being held in Escambia County jail. He has been charged with murder and sexual battery. Wells was identified after Parabon NanoLabs, a Virginia-based company working with the Pensacola Police Department and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, ran a DNA sample obtained from the scene of the crime through an open-source genealogy database and identified several different people believed to be distant cousins of the suspect. https://www.nwfdailynews.com/news/20200402/suspect-in-1985-northwest-florida-cold-case-murder-found-dead-in-jail-cell. He got to be around his children and all those years he was out there, knowing what he did. He was carrying it around with him and he was never going to tell anyone what he did. "(Tonya) can rest now," Renee said after being told of Wells' arrest. His age is 60. For copyright information, check with the distributor of this item, Pensacola (Fla.) News Journal. Chuck Mallett, who led the investigation. The arrest on Wednesday is the oldest . Sign up for NBC South Florida newsletters. . Daniel Leonard Wells, 57, was found dead in his cell at Escambia County Sheriff's Office in an apparent suicide Thursday morning. Police surveillance teams then surreptitiously obtained his DNA from a discarded cigarette, which was tested and matched DNA found at the crime scene. Investigators were secretly following Wells on March 4 when he tossed a cigarette out of his car, according to an arrest warrant. Jeffrey M Gallagher, Michelle L Phillips, and three other persons are also associated with this address. ADVERTISEMENT Years later, thanks to advances in DNA testing, all of the evidence was identified as being from the same person, but no matches were ever found in the national DNA database. Tonyas son Tim Davidson Jr. called Daniel a coward, adding that the defendant didnt even wait until the trial started. He said, Its frustrating for our family on a lot of levels because we waited so long to get justice. PENSACOLA, Fla. A man who was arrested last month in a 35-year-old Florida Panhandle slaying has been found dead in jail from an apparent suicide, authorities said. From there, the Pensacola police, FDLE and Parabon constructed a family tree, starting with the distant relatives, that eventually led them to identify Wells as a suspect. Lets begin then, shall we? "She can finally rest.". Their mother, Laverne, lives in Jay with Renee. She said she did not have any more information to share. The case went nowhere for years, but officers said they used Parabon NanoLabs to help them break the case. But DNA in a public database eventually linked McKinley's killer to Wells' family and then to him, police said. and will make his first court appearance Thursday morning, Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. Using that, they and Parabon made use of an open-source genealogy database, used it to locate distant relatives of the suspect, and finally found the defendant, officers said in the Pensacola News Journal report. According to the arrest report, there is a less than 1 in 700 billion chance that the DNA from the crime scene is a match to anyone other than Wells. "My mom, she never got to raise me, never got to be a part of my life," Davidson said after the arrest. Arrest: Pensacola police make arrest in 35-year-old cold case murder using familial DNA. Now, it seems like we just have a lot more unanswered questions., [Mugshot via Pensacola Police Department], Have a tip we should know? Two weeks after his arrest in a 35-year-old cold case murder, Daniel Leonard Wells was found hanged in his cell at the Escambia County Jail early Thursday morning, dead of an apparent suicide just days before he was scheduled to make a court appearance in the case. DNA left at the scene of the crime helped locate distant relatives of the suspect. Thats all moot now. Cold case investigators. Browse . The landline phone number 8165849629 is registered to Daniel Leonard Wells in Pensacola, FL at 5206 Cerny Rd. "My mom, she never got to raise me, never got to be a part of my life," Davidson said after the arrest. ", Your California Privacy Rights/Privacy Policy. The presence or absence of records for any individual is not a guarantee of any kind. His first hearing to face charges of first-degree murder and first-degree sexual battery had been scheduled for April 8, the Pensacola News Journal reported. From there, the Pensacola police, FDLE and Parabon constructed a family tree, starting with the distant relatives, that eventually led them to identify Wells as a suspect. Daniel Leonard Wells, 57, was responsible, cops say, according to The Pensacola News Journal. It wasn't immediately clear whether Wells had hired or been assigned an attorney, Wood said Thursday. From there, investigators said they found Wells and confirmed he was the killer after obtaining a discarded cigarette. The investigators interviewed several partygoers to learn the last time anyone had seen Tonya alive was around 1:15 am. We found 4 phone numbers and email addresses. [emailprotected]. The Escambia County Sheriff's Office confirmed Wells had been found dead in his cell. The investigators initially could not find the cause of death or the identity of the body. They have also lived in Pensacola, FL and Gulf Breeze, FL. Orlando police used the method in November 2018 to identify a suspect in the 2001 murder of Christine Franke and arrested Benjamin Holmes for first-degree murder. He wasnt going to ever just say what he did on his own.. Current Address: EWZU Cerny Rd, Pensacola, FL. ", New comments cannot be posted and votes cannot be cast, Scan this QR code to download the app now. Daniel Leonard Wells, 57, was found hanged in his cell at the Escambia County Jail early Thursday morning, according to the sheriffs office. She was half-nude, strangled to death and sexually assaulted. Around three and a half decades later, Pensacola police arrested Daniel Leonard Wells, 57, for Tonya's homicide. Spokeo's database, while extensive, does not contain all U.S. warrant, arrest, court, or other related records. McKinley, the mother of an 18-month-old boy, was seen alive early New Year's Day in 1985 at Darryl's Bar & Grille. . He got to be around his children and all those years he was out there, knowing what he did. In 1988, he was arrested on suspicion of solicitation of prostitution in Pensacola. Press J to jump to the feed. He was found hanged in his cell early Thursday morning, according to authorities in a Pensacola News Journalreport. Click a city to find Daniel more easily. Renee said Tonya loved Rod Stewart and KISS and was trying to make a better life for herself when she was killed. I'm positive of that.". Daniel Leonard Wells, 57, is facing charges of first-degree murder and first-degree sexual battery in the 1985 murder of 23-year-old Tonya Ethridge McKinley. Wells was recently identified after a Virginia-based company working with the Pensacola Police Department and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement ran a DNA sample from the crime scene through an open-source genealogy database and identified several distant cousins of the suspect. Pensacola Police announced Thursday that Daniel Leonard Wells, of Pensacola, was arrested Wednesday and charged with homicide and sexual battery. "It weighed a lot on him. She was last seen alive around 1:30 a.m. at Darryls Bar & Grille in Pensacola, and in the early-morning hours of New Years Day her body was found in an empty lot at the corner of Peacock Drive and Creighton Road, just one block off Scenic Highway. She recounted how they danced, met with friends, and partied till the late night hours of New Years Eve. Now, it seems like we just have a lot more unanswered questions. McKinley, 23, was last seen alive early New Years Day in 1985 at a restaurant. ", Download the NBC News app for breaking news and politics. According to the arrest report, there is a less than onein 700 billion chance that the DNA from the crime scene is a match to anyone other than Wells. The Escambia County Sheriff's Office confirmed Wells had been found dead in his cell. He was carrying it around with him and he was never going to tell anyone what he did. "There are people out there who know (what happened). Wells, 57, was arrested by the Pensacola Police Department on March 18 for the 1985 murder of Tonya Ethridge McKinley. But for most of the time, they had no suspect in the killing of McKinley, who was survived by an 18-month-old son. Tonya and Renee's father, Joe, died in April 2000. Daniel Wells was arrested in connection with the 1985 murder of Tonya McKinley in Florida. 2023 Cinemaholic Inc. All rights reserved. A family tree was constructed that eventually led investigators to Wells. It seems that every couple of years a new lead would pop up and we would drop everything to run it down, Pensacola cops said in a statement. Weve your back if youre interested in finding out more about the case and the killers identity. He got to have a family. Davidson was 18 months old at the time of the murder. "The reasons why this happened, how evil crossed Tonya's path, may never be answered and in the end may not be important," according to police. We located 9 sex offenders matching the name "Daniel Wells" in the US. May go by: Dan Leonard Wells Age. This home is the most recent known address for Daniel. Read More: Matthew Winkler Murder: Where is Mary Winkler Now? Wells' DNA is being offered to other nearby law enforcement agencies with unsolved sex crimes because he has lived locally the whole time, Pensacola police spokesman Mike Wood said. For an optimal experience visit our site on another browser. "What is important is that no one forgot Tonya. She was half-nude, strangled to death and sexually assaulted. Tonya's older sister, Renee Ethridge, has run the "Tonya Ethridge McKinley Memorial" page on Facebook since 2012 in hopes of keeping her sister's case in the public eye. Past Addresses: Pensacola FL, Kansas City MO +4 more. According to court records, Wells was arrested in Pensacola in 1987 for battery and witness tampering, but the witness tampering charge was dropped after he pled no contest to the battery charge. "I didn't really know if this [arrest] would ever happen," the victim's relieved sister, Renee McCall, 62, a nurse, told NBC News on Thursday. Check out The Morning News to get the latest news, weather and traffic in Central Florida. She was half-nude, strangled to death and sexually assaulted. Emailus. According to police reports, surveillance teams obtained his DNA from a discarded cigarette, which was tested and matched with DNA found at the crime scene. Watch: PPD makes oldest cold-case arrest in Pensacola history. Moreover, the winding roads and complex layout of the neighborhood convinced the cops that the killer hailed from the local community. Evidence suggested she had been raped, and they also discovered a blood-soaked blue towel by her head. Counts may not reflect the number of records that will appear in search results. Pensacola, FL View Full Details Phone Numbers. Lets begin then, shall we? Wells, 57, was arrested by the Pensacola Police Department on . Daniel Leonard Wells, 57, is facing charges of first-degree murder and first-degree sexual battery in the 1985 murder of 23-year-old Tonya Ethridge McKinley. She had been strangled and sexually assaulted, officials said. "She can finally rest.". It is the oldest cold-case arrest in Pensacola history and the first time the familial DNA method has been used to solve a case in Northwest Florida. Wells was being charged with first-degree murder and first-degree sexual battery and was scheduled to be in court on April 8 for his first hearing in the case. "This was a case that spanned three generations of detectives," said Captain Chuck Mallett, who led the investigation. Their parting exchange was wishing each other New Year greetings, and Tonya stated she would see her the following morning. No suspects had been publicly named. According to the arrest report, there is a less than 1 in 700 billion chance that the DNA from the crime scene is a match to anyone other than Wells. 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