Kentucky State Police Detective Tye Chavies testified at David Sparks' preliminary hearing about the condition of Savannah Spurlock's body.
Gruesome details surrounding the condition of Savannah Spurlock’s body when it was discovered in a “clandestine grave” in Kentucky have been released by investigators.
The 23-year-old mother of four was nude, bound by the hands and feet, and bundled in a rug and trash bags when she was left in a shallow grave behind a Garrard County home belonging to the parents of David Sparks, the man now charged in her disappearance, officials said.
Sparks, 23, appeared in Garrard County district court Monday for a preliminary hearing.
There, Kentucky State Police Detective Tye Chavies testified Sparks told investigators he fell asleep after Spurlock went with him to his own home Jan. 4, the last night she was seen alive, WKYT-TV reported.
He allegedly claimed he let Spurlock sleep in his room and he slept on the couch, and that at one point, she asked where she was so she could arrange a ride home.
Sparks said when he woke, Spurlock was gone, Chavies said.
But Sparks was arrested in connection to her disappearance after authorities last week recovered her body from a shallow grave behind his parents’ home.
Police said they believe Sparks went to his parents’ home the evening of Jan. 4 and that he returned there early Jan. 5.
Sparks was found to have texted his sister Jan. 4 asking where she bought a rug so he could purchase a new one, authorities said. Surveillance video at a Walmart in Richmond allegedly captured Sparks buying a rug that investigators said was used to bury Spurlock.
Chavies said the rug buried with Spurlock matched the material found in Sparks’ home.
Blood found in his home matched Spurlock’s DNA and evidence recovered at the burial site matched what was found in Sparks’ home, according to investigators.
At its deepest point, the hole in which Spurlock was left was about 19 inches, Chavies said. The black plastic in which her body was wrapped could be seen at points without disturbing the ground, he said.
Spurlock’s loved ones were in court for Sparks’ appearance, including her father, Cecil Spurlock, who arrived carrying a photo of himself with his daughter, according to reports.
Many present were hearing the details surrounding the condition her body was found in for the first time.
“A lot of stuff that he revealed that we didn’t know about, I personally didn’t know,” Spurlock’s best friend, Sabrina Speratos, told WKYT-TV. “That was rough. It’s emotional. It’s hard to talk about. You hope to never hear anything like that. It’s pretty gruesome.”
Sparks has been charged with tampering with evidence and abuse of a corpse.
Spurlock’s cause of death has not yet been determined. No one has been charged in connection to her killing.
Sparks’ case was waived to a grand jury. He was transported back to Lincoln Regional Jail, where he is being held without bond.
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