๐ ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐๐ฎ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐๐ญ๐ฌ ๐๐ก๐๐ซ๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐๐ซ ๐๐๐๐ซ๐๐ก ๐๐ง๐๐จ๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐๐ฎ๐ซ๐ง๐๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ฆ๐๐ง ๐๐๐ฆ๐๐ข๐ง๐ฌ ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐ก๐๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ก๐๐ญ๐๐ฆ๐ข๐ง๐
Thomason
Watson
Bell
Ortiz
๐ซ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐: ๐จ๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐. ๐ช๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ , ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ , ๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ . ๐ป๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ท๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ช๐๐๐๐ ๐บ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐.
On June 17, 2026, the Saline County Sheriffโs Office was contacted by the Kansas City, Missouri Police Department Missing Person/Homicide Unit in reference to a missing person from Kansas City identified as Amber Simpson. According to the probable cause statements, investigators had received information from an anonymous tip alleging Simpson had been killed and that her body had been burned at a residence in rural Nelson, Missouri, on May 28, 2026.
Based on information received from Kansas City police, along with other documentation, records, and evidentiary material, investigators applied for and received a search warrant for the rural Nelson property, located in the 30000 block of 116th Road.
On June 18, 2026, the search warrant was executed at the property. According to the probable cause statements, agencies present during the search and evidence recovery included the Saline County Sheriffโs Office, the Missouri State Highway Patrol, a Kansas City Police Department K-9 unit, the Kansas City Fire Department, the Missouri Department of Public Safety Division of Fire Safety, and a forensic anthropologist from the University of Missouri.
According to Thomasonโs probable cause statement, investigators first made contact with Kristopher Michael Bell outside the residence. Bell told investigators that the homeowner, Damon Anthony Thomason, was inside the residence and went to get him. After a brief conversation with someone inside, Bell stated that Thomason had indicated investigators could enter the residence.
Investigators then made contact with Thomason just inside the front door. Thomason was asked if he knew anything about a homicide out of Kansas City, and he stated he did not. Thomason then stated a couple had been at the residence three or four weeks earlier. Investigators asked Thomason whether anyone had asked him for permission to put a body on his property. Thomason stated they had not. At the conclusion of the initial interview, Thomason was advised that investigators had a search warrant for the property.
After investigators exited the residence, Bell was not present. Bell was later located on the north side of the residence with Felix Lopez Watson Jr. Bell and Watson were advised that investigators had a search warrant for the property and returned to the front of the residence. Bell reported living at the residence for about a year. Watson stated he had lived there for about two months.
Thomason stated he did not know anything except that he had heard people talking that morning and that the situation seemed strange. Thomason stated the people were talking about โstupid shitโ and how they were going to kill โmother fuckers.โ
During the execution of the search warrant, investigators observed tire tracks leading south onto adjacent property. The tire tracks led to a burn area that appeared recent, with grass still growing around undefined edges of the area. Investigators observed steel belts consistent with burned tires in the burn pile, along with numerous bones readily identifiable as chicken bones. During a visual search of the burn pile and surrounding area, investigators observed bones consistent with being human. Investigators also located a metal fire poker near the burn area. The poker was burned on the ends and appeared consistent with being used to stir the fire. A medical identification bracelet issued to Watson was also located near the burn area.
A cadaver-sniffing canine alerted for the presence of a deceased human being in the burn pile. After possible human remains were observed and the canine alerted, investigators stopped the search and obtained an additional search warrant to continue searching and seize evidence.
After the second warrant was obtained, the University of Missouri was contacted and a forensic anthropologist was requested to assist with identifying and collecting human remains. The forensic anthropologist collected numerous bones determined to be human from in and around the burn pile. The forensic anthropologist reported that the severe degradation of the human bones was caused by one fire that continued for an extended period of time or by multiple fires over an extended period of time.
On June 18, investigators interviewed Watson. According to Watsonโs probable cause statement, Watson stated a Black male came to the residence with two females. Watson stated he did not know what they were going to do and said they went to a field behind the house. When asked what had been found on the property, Watson stated a body.
Investigators asked Watson about the burn area to the south. Watson stated the area was not on the property and said he had not paid attention to it. When investigators showed Watson a photograph of the medical bracelet recovered from the burn area, Watson stated he did not know and then said the last time he went back there, he threw trash all the way in the back. Watson stated the trash included paper, cardboard, and tires. Watson said he forgot the medical bracelet had been on his arm. When told the bracelet was found next to the human remains investigators had located, Watson stated it was in the trash. Investigators noted that when reminding Watson that he had just said the bracelet was on his wrist, Watson stated, โI donโt know, I just went to the hospital too.โ Watson also stated they burned dead turkeys at the location. When investigators told Watson they were aware something else had been burned there and that he knew what it was, Watson stated he did not know. He stated he burned turkeys, trash, and tires there, but did not know what else was back there. Watson ended the interview by requesting to speak with his attorney.
During the same June 18 search, investigators located drug evidence inside the residence. According to the probable cause statements filed in reference to Thomason, Bell, and Watson, investigators located a bag containing 11 grams of a white crystal substance in a kitchen drawer under the kitchen island. The white crystal substance tested positive for the presence of methamphetamine. Investigators also located items of drug paraphernalia in the kitchen drawer, including a digital scale that weighed in grams. A plate containing white crystal powder and a snorting tube were also located in the kitchen drawer.
According to the probable cause statement involving Bell, investigators located an improvised smoking device used to smoke methamphetamine in Bellโs bedroom. Investigators also located a digital scale that weighed in grams and a small ziplock bag with white powdery residue. The improvised smoking device and ziplock bag were located on the same shelf as a wallet containing an identification card issued to Bell. The digital scale was located in plain view on a couch or loveseat. Bell stated he used the improvised smoking device to smoke methamphetamine. Bell also stated he was aware of the 11 grams of methamphetamine in the kitchen drawer and had used methamphetamine from the same drawer with Watson and Thomason.
According to the probable cause statement involving Thomason, Thomason stated the bag containing 11 grams of methamphetamine was his. Thomason also stated he had used methamphetamine two days before June 19, 2026. Thomason further stated he provided methamphetamine to Bell and Watson and that they all used the methamphetamine together.
According to the probable cause statement involving Watson, Watson was under supervision with the Missouri Department of Probation and Parole for possession of a controlled substance. When asked to provide a urine sample for drug analysis, Watson indicated he would test positive for methamphetamine.
Investigators also searched an upstairs northwest bedroom during the June 18 warrant. According to the probable cause statement involving Denyce Reneโ Ortiz, the bedroom was padlocked. Two residents stated they did not have a key and said the female who resided in the bedroom had moved out months earlier. Investigators forced open the bedroom door to complete the search warrant. Upon entering the room, an investigator immediately observed a bowl containing SpaghettiOs and a spoon on a shelf near the door. The SpaghettiOs were still fresh, the sauce was still in liquid form, and there were no signs of mold or aging. During a further search of the room, investigators recovered multiple items of drug paraphernalia associated with the use and distribution of methamphetamine or controlled substances. Investigators also recovered white powder that field-tested positive for methamphetamine.
The items recovered included a red zippered vinyl container with Bauer imprinted on the top that contained 49 small ziplock bags. Investigators also recovered three sections of rubber tubing bound together with a black tie, two sections of rubber tubing bound together with a black tie, and one section of rubber tubing containing white powdery residue. Two samples of white powder from the rubber tubing tested positive for the presence of methamphetamine. Investigators also recovered a Uniform Citation issued by the Warrensburg Police Department to Denyse Rene Ortiz on April 13, 2026, for a stealing offense. The address listed on the citation was the same rural Nelson address.
Investigators also interviewed an unidentified witness who reported being at the residence on May 29, 2026. The witness stated she had been inside the upstairs northwest bedroom that day. When asked how she accessed the padlocked room, the witness stated Ortiz was present at the residence and allowed her access to the room.
On June 23, investigators interviewed Thomason again after advising him of his Miranda rights. Thomason stated he woke up one morning and the subjects were at his residence. When asked if he knew they had put a body on his property, Thomason stated, โI figure that was probably what was going on now.โ Thomason denied helping burn the body. When asked who did, Thomason stated, โOk Iโm guessing that [Watson] did.โ Thomason stated that a couple of days later, he saw part of the brush pile and asked Watson about large pieces of wood there. Thomason stated Watson told him he guessed they did not burn. Thomason reported seeing logs about four feet long with the limbs burned off. Thomason stated he asked Watson whether he was going to clean up the area. Thomason also stated that as time went on, Watson told him another girl had killed Simpson.
During the interview, Thomason stated, โI never saw the body, no sir.โ When asked what he saw, Thomason stated that at one point he thought he could see a bone in the pile of rubble but was not sure. Thomason stated it looked like a leg bone and described it as โbig.โ Investigators asked Thomason who went down there every day to burn the body. Thomason stated Watson was burning trash every day and always went down by himself. Thomason stated Watson did not tell him he was going down there to burn the body. Thomason later stated he was โpretty sureโ he saw a bone in the pile. When asked how many times he went down there, Thomason first stated โmaybe twice,โ then later stated he believed it was probably three times.
Investigators asked Thomason whether the fire was new and had never been there before Simpson had been burned there. Thomason indicated that was correct. Thomason stated he had never burned anything there until he helped put chickens in the area. Thomason denied telling Watson to make sure to burn the body. Thomason stated he told Watson to clean up the sticks and said he was not sure a body was there. When investigators told Thomason he had said he saw a leg bone, Thomason stated, โMan, in my heart, I knew.โ Thomason then stated, โYes, I did. I told [Watson] to go down there and clean that shit up, whatever it was.โ When investigators asked if that included the body he saw, Thomason stated, โExactly, whatever it was, I told him to clean it up.โ Thomason later stated he believed it was probably Simpsonโs body after he saw the leg bone after the area had been burned again. Thomason then stated, โI guess I did, I kind of did.โ When investigators told him he knew, Thomason stated, โYa.โ
On June 23, investigators also interviewed Bell. According to Watsonโs probable cause statement, Bell stated Watson had been at the residence for a couple of months. Bell stated Watson was going down and burning trash every night. Bell further stated he did not go back to the burn pile and did not burn trash with Watson at night. Bell reported that Watson continued going out every night after subjects arrived at the residence causing a commotion. Bell stated tire tracks leading farther down the property were fresh and had appeared a couple of weeks earlier. Bell also stated the tracks were not there before. Bell said Watson would drive Thomasonโs truck back there every night but did not know how far back he went.
During the investigation, the Kansas City Police Crime Laboratory extracted DNA from a fragmented bone. The laboratory determined the DNA profile obtained from the tissue cutting was more than 1 billion times more likely to be observed in the population if Simpson was the contributor of the sample than if an unknown individual was the contributor.
Thomason is now charged with abandonment of a corpse, tampering with physical evidence in a felony prosecution, delivery of a controlled substance, and unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia.
Watson is now charged with abandonment of a corpse, tampering with physical evidence in a felony prosecution, delivery of a controlled substance, and unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia.
Bell is now charged with delivery of a controlled substance and unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia.
Ortiz is now charged with delivery of a controlled substance and unlawful possession of drug paraphernalia.
๐๐ฎ๐๐ฒย ๐๐ป๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ๐บ๐ฎ๐๐ถ๐ผ๐ป:
