AUBURNDALE, Fla. — Auburndale Police said a missing person investigation turned into a homicide investigation after a conversation with the victim's boyfriend led to information that she had been brutally attacked.
On Thursday, Feb. 6, police started a missing person investigation for Stacy Ann Powell. Powell had not logged into her work computer since Feb. 4.
Officers went to Powell's home at the 500 block of Alleria Court and found a handyman making repairs to the cabinets. The handyman said the residents were not home.
While speaking to the handyman, police said the handyman received a call from Powell's boyfriend, Andrew Alan Ridgeway, asking about the presence of law enforcement at the home. During the conversation, Ridgeway claimed he was in North Carolina with Powell's grandmother and that Stacy had taken an Uber to Orlando International Airport to visit her ill father in Jamaica on Feb. 5.
Investigators said they quickly determined that Ridgeway's story was false, learning that Powell's father lives in North Carolina, not Jamaica. Powell's father had also contacted law enforcement after not hearing from his daughter in two days.
Detectives then issued a search warrant of the home and discovered evidence indicating Powell had been brutally attacked and murdered.
According to police, a positive identification was made of Powell with the assistance of the Polk County Sheriff's Office.
On Feb. 7, Ridgeway was caught in Augusta, Georgia, while driving Powell's pickup truck. Police are charging Powell with providing false information to law enforcement and homicide.
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