DELAND, Fla. — Update 5/25/22
The Deland Police Department says Chattanooga Police arrested Rober Fleming Wednesday morning.
Deland police plan to provide additional details this afternoon on his capture
WFTV has reached out to the Chattanooga Police Department as well to see if they plan to release any details.
Original Story
DeLand police say they now have a suspect in the murder of a woman whose body was left in a car for two days.
Police were called to the Walgreens at the intersection of East New York Ave. and South Amelia Ave. Tuesday afternoon after someone called and suggested they check out a car in the parking lot.
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In the car, officers say they found the body of 36-year-old Latosia Warren, dead from an apparent gunshot wound.
DeLand police have identified the suspect in Warren’s murder as her husband, 36-year-old Robert Fleming.
Investigators say Fleming and Warren are both from the Cleveland, Ohio area and had been living in Central Florida for the past few months.
Ohio court records show the couple got married in March of 2020 before they traveled to the DeLand area.
It was around 1 p.m. Thursday afternoon when DeLand police received a call to check out a car parked at the Walgreens behind the county courthouse.
“Our investigation has led us to believe there is no immediate threat to the public,” Deputy Chief of the DeLand Police Department Adam Kisthardt said. “It does not appear to be a random act…It is an act of random violence.”
Police say they believe Warren’s body had been in the parking lot since early Sunday morning.
Investigators say the way she was sitting in the car, and the fact there were no obvious signs of bullet holes in it made it easy for people to pass by without giving it a second look.
Police have not said who the car was registered to, but did say it didn’t belong to Warren.
However, they say there is evidence that a gun was fired either inside or near the car.
Police have not released any information on the person who called about the car.
“We had a citizen contact the police station about a vehicle they were concerned about, Kisthardt said.” They just told us to go to the Walgreens and look for a vehicle.”
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Warren has no criminal record in Volusia County. Police say, so far, her ties to the area are unknown.
Fleming also has no criminal record in Volusia County. However, he does have a history of misdemeanor arrests in Ohio. If spotted, people are urged not to approach him and call police immediately. Once arrested, police say he faces a charge of first-degree murder.
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