TAMPA, Fla. — Editor's note: The mugshot above is from a 2011 arrest.
The man accused of killing a woman and leaving parts of her body in McKay Bay did not appear in court Wednesday afternoon for a bond hearing after all.
Robert Kessler, a 69-year-old man from Lutz, was not present at his pretrial detention hearing, according to a court spokesperson. He originally was set to appear Monday but refused to leave his jail cell, so the hearing was moved to Wednesday, the person said earlier.
A judge ultimately denied bond for Kessler, keeping him behind bars. He was arrested for the murder of 47-year-old Stephanie Crone-Overholts, Interim Tampa Police Chief Ruben Delgado said during an earlier news conference. Kessler was already in custody on an unrelated drug charge.
According to the chief, Crone-Overholts was living with Kessler before her disappearance. When police questioned him about her, he told authorities she had left.
However, Delgado says it turned out Kessler was lying because after locating Crone-Overholts' car, authorities found her blood inside of it. After searching Kessler's home, police say they found the same blood on a pair of shoes.
Crone-Overholts had moved to Florida in 2020 from Pennsylvania. Delgado says she met Kessler at a fast-food restaurant and told him she lived in her car before Kessler invited her to live with him.
Police say they were first tipped off to Crone-Overholts' death after a fisherman discovered a human leg on Nov. 11 in McKay Bay. Authorities say they would later find additional body parts in the bay.
The cause of death is still unknown, according to the chief. However, the medical examiner ruled the case a homicide.
Delgado says Kessler is being charged with second-degree murder and abuse of a dead body.
The investigation is still ongoing.