bloodrayne
01-29-2004, 07:23 PM
Man may have been alive when stuffed in container
Police affidavits describe confession of James Fagone as the case against him, victim's wife unfold.
By Michael Baker
The Fresno Bee
(Updated Saturday, August 2, 2003, 4:17 AM)
Timothy Schuster may have been alive when corrosive chemicals were poured over him in the moments before he was sealed into a blue plastic barrel used to store chemical waste.
Such a scenario is given by the former award-winning student allegedly enlisted by Schuster's estranged wife to kill the 45-year-old Clovis man, according to affidavits written by police and sworn to in Fresno County Superior Court.
The affidavits, which The Bee obtained Thursday, were filed to support search warrants served during the investigation of Larissa Schuster, 42, and James Fagone, 21. Both have pleaded innocent to possible death penalty allegations of lying in wait, kidnapping, torturing and murdering Timothy Schuster for financial gain.
In one affidavit, police give a brief but chilling version of Fagone's confession:
At 2 a.m. on July 10, Fagone and Larissa Schuster went to her husband's Clovis home and "used a stun gun to disable him when he answered the front door. They then took him through the house and tied him up. They put him in his truck and drove him to Larissa's Clovis house. There they stuffed him in a plastic barrel and poured caustic chemicals over him. They then sealed the barrel." Larissa Schuster's attorney, Roger Nuttall, said he would not give details but said he has uncovered evidence that questions Fagone's truthfulness.
"From what little we know, I can't say that I place a good deal of stock in what he's saying," Nuttall said.
"I'm saying that it's not such that I don't have a lot of questions concerning his veracity."
Fagone's attorney, public defender Peter Jones, said, "It would be inappropriate to comment at this juncture."
And while Clovis police initially told reporters that Timothy Schuster was killed before being put in the chemical drum, they are now unsure.
"There is a possibility he may still have been alive when he was placed in the barrel, but again, we're waiting for determination from the Coroner's Office," said Clovis police spokeswoman Janet Stoll-Lee.
Fresno County's chief forensic pathologist, Venu Gopal, who performed Schuster's autopsy, said a cause of death is not yet able to be made public. He did say that Schuster could have been "still alive or dying at the time of them putting him in the barrel."
The Coroner's Office has ordered DNA tests to confirm the body's identification, but Clovis police say they are convinced it is Schuster.
Other details of Fagone's confession are also given in the warrant served to search his home. Fagone told detectives:
The day after sealing Timothy Schuster's body into the barrel, and after detectives interviewed Larissa Schuster for the first time, Fagone and the biochemist moved the chemical drum to her Fresno business.
Then on July 12, "Larissa called him and asked his help to move the barrel again, but he refused saying he had had enough."
Before Fagone reportedly confessed on July 15, police had already built up a strong suspicion about Larissa Schuster after interviewing several of the employees of her business, Central California Research Laboratories.
According to affidavits, employees reported that Larissa Schuster had displayed hatred of her husband and often wished him dead.
After 191/2 years of marriage, the Schusters were embroiled in a bitter divorce, fighting over custody of their 12-year-old son and financial assets totaling millions of dollars.
She asked one employee whether he thought she would be able to fit her husband's body in a large blue plastic drum, kept at the business to store chemical waste.
"Two employees reported that when they heard that Timothy was missing, they joked about Larissa's comments about stuffing him in a barrel," police said. "They then went to see if the barrel was still there [and] were surprised to see that it had disappeared."
At least six search warrants have been issued during the investigation of Schuster and Fagone.
On July 11, the day after the obsessively punctual Timothy Schuster missed several appointments, police searched his Clovis home. They found his wallet and cell phone, items friends say the man would have not left.
On July 14 and 15, police searched Larissa Schuster's Clovis home, her business and a self-storage unit she used. They confiscated several items including blond wigs, hair and bloody tennis shoes from Schuster's home; and Fagone's time sheets, chemical order invoices, saws and a mop and bucket from the business.
Inside the storage unit, police found a barrel wrapped in a cardboard cover with a shipping label from Larissa Schuster's business. Inside the drum was the decomposing and partially dismembered body police believe is Timothy Schuster.
Police arrested Fagone July 15 and Schuster the next day.
On July 18, police searched Fagone's home, where detectives seized receipts for a stun gun and a 14-inch cable tie, bank statements, a folding buck knife and computer equipment.
On July 21, detectives again searched Larissa Schuster's business. This time, they seized computer equipment after being told Schuster possibly destroyed evidence by deleting files of invoices, e-mails and financial transactions.
When asked about several of the details provided in the warrants, Clovis police said they would not comment further.
"There are certain aspects and different aspects of this case that only people involved would know, and it would jeopardize our case if that information became public at this time," Stoll-Lee said. "The case is still under investigation, and as information becomes available which can be released, either we will release it or you will find it in court documents."
A review of the warrants shows police interviewed witnesses who were able to pick up the narrative of July 12 where Fagone left off:
Larissa Schuster called an employee and asked for help renting a truck with a lift gate. The employee believes Schuster used the truck to travel to the storage unit.
For months, the employee had rented the storage unit in her name, but Schuster paid the bill. The unit, Schuster said, was to hide property from her husband until their divorce was final.
When Schuster returned the truck, the employee noticed blood on one of Larissa's shoes.
"I'm pretty certain there will be a valid explanation for that," Nuttall said.
Larissa Schuster was arrested at a St. Louis airport and was flown back to Fresno on July 17. She was arraigned the next day with Fagone.
The pair, who appeared in court together Wednesday, have their next court date scheduled for Aug. 28, when a judge will determine whether there is sufficient evidence to order them to trial. If so ordered, Fresno County prosecutors will later decide whether to seek the death penalty.
Police affidavits describe confession of James Fagone as the case against him, victim's wife unfold.
By Michael Baker
The Fresno Bee
(Updated Saturday, August 2, 2003, 4:17 AM)
Timothy Schuster may have been alive when corrosive chemicals were poured over him in the moments before he was sealed into a blue plastic barrel used to store chemical waste.
Such a scenario is given by the former award-winning student allegedly enlisted by Schuster's estranged wife to kill the 45-year-old Clovis man, according to affidavits written by police and sworn to in Fresno County Superior Court.
The affidavits, which The Bee obtained Thursday, were filed to support search warrants served during the investigation of Larissa Schuster, 42, and James Fagone, 21. Both have pleaded innocent to possible death penalty allegations of lying in wait, kidnapping, torturing and murdering Timothy Schuster for financial gain.
In one affidavit, police give a brief but chilling version of Fagone's confession:
At 2 a.m. on July 10, Fagone and Larissa Schuster went to her husband's Clovis home and "used a stun gun to disable him when he answered the front door. They then took him through the house and tied him up. They put him in his truck and drove him to Larissa's Clovis house. There they stuffed him in a plastic barrel and poured caustic chemicals over him. They then sealed the barrel." Larissa Schuster's attorney, Roger Nuttall, said he would not give details but said he has uncovered evidence that questions Fagone's truthfulness.
"From what little we know, I can't say that I place a good deal of stock in what he's saying," Nuttall said.
"I'm saying that it's not such that I don't have a lot of questions concerning his veracity."
Fagone's attorney, public defender Peter Jones, said, "It would be inappropriate to comment at this juncture."
And while Clovis police initially told reporters that Timothy Schuster was killed before being put in the chemical drum, they are now unsure.
"There is a possibility he may still have been alive when he was placed in the barrel, but again, we're waiting for determination from the Coroner's Office," said Clovis police spokeswoman Janet Stoll-Lee.
Fresno County's chief forensic pathologist, Venu Gopal, who performed Schuster's autopsy, said a cause of death is not yet able to be made public. He did say that Schuster could have been "still alive or dying at the time of them putting him in the barrel."
The Coroner's Office has ordered DNA tests to confirm the body's identification, but Clovis police say they are convinced it is Schuster.
Other details of Fagone's confession are also given in the warrant served to search his home. Fagone told detectives:
The day after sealing Timothy Schuster's body into the barrel, and after detectives interviewed Larissa Schuster for the first time, Fagone and the biochemist moved the chemical drum to her Fresno business.
Then on July 12, "Larissa called him and asked his help to move the barrel again, but he refused saying he had had enough."
Before Fagone reportedly confessed on July 15, police had already built up a strong suspicion about Larissa Schuster after interviewing several of the employees of her business, Central California Research Laboratories.
According to affidavits, employees reported that Larissa Schuster had displayed hatred of her husband and often wished him dead.
After 191/2 years of marriage, the Schusters were embroiled in a bitter divorce, fighting over custody of their 12-year-old son and financial assets totaling millions of dollars.
She asked one employee whether he thought she would be able to fit her husband's body in a large blue plastic drum, kept at the business to store chemical waste.
"Two employees reported that when they heard that Timothy was missing, they joked about Larissa's comments about stuffing him in a barrel," police said. "They then went to see if the barrel was still there [and] were surprised to see that it had disappeared."
At least six search warrants have been issued during the investigation of Schuster and Fagone.
On July 11, the day after the obsessively punctual Timothy Schuster missed several appointments, police searched his Clovis home. They found his wallet and cell phone, items friends say the man would have not left.
On July 14 and 15, police searched Larissa Schuster's Clovis home, her business and a self-storage unit she used. They confiscated several items including blond wigs, hair and bloody tennis shoes from Schuster's home; and Fagone's time sheets, chemical order invoices, saws and a mop and bucket from the business.
Inside the storage unit, police found a barrel wrapped in a cardboard cover with a shipping label from Larissa Schuster's business. Inside the drum was the decomposing and partially dismembered body police believe is Timothy Schuster.
Police arrested Fagone July 15 and Schuster the next day.
On July 18, police searched Fagone's home, where detectives seized receipts for a stun gun and a 14-inch cable tie, bank statements, a folding buck knife and computer equipment.
On July 21, detectives again searched Larissa Schuster's business. This time, they seized computer equipment after being told Schuster possibly destroyed evidence by deleting files of invoices, e-mails and financial transactions.
When asked about several of the details provided in the warrants, Clovis police said they would not comment further.
"There are certain aspects and different aspects of this case that only people involved would know, and it would jeopardize our case if that information became public at this time," Stoll-Lee said. "The case is still under investigation, and as information becomes available which can be released, either we will release it or you will find it in court documents."
A review of the warrants shows police interviewed witnesses who were able to pick up the narrative of July 12 where Fagone left off:
Larissa Schuster called an employee and asked for help renting a truck with a lift gate. The employee believes Schuster used the truck to travel to the storage unit.
For months, the employee had rented the storage unit in her name, but Schuster paid the bill. The unit, Schuster said, was to hide property from her husband until their divorce was final.
When Schuster returned the truck, the employee noticed blood on one of Larissa's shoes.
"I'm pretty certain there will be a valid explanation for that," Nuttall said.
Larissa Schuster was arrested at a St. Louis airport and was flown back to Fresno on July 17. She was arraigned the next day with Fagone.
The pair, who appeared in court together Wednesday, have their next court date scheduled for Aug. 28, when a judge will determine whether there is sufficient evidence to order them to trial. If so ordered, Fresno County prosecutors will later decide whether to seek the death penalty.