Court documents identify suspects in homicides of Rebecca and Russell Porter

U.S. Marshals arrested Tony and Windy Friend on drug and weapons charges

May 31, 2012|by Dave Stewart, Managing Editor | dstewart@kspr.com

Greene County Sheriff's Dept.

SPRINGFIELD, Mo. -- Court documents have revealed the names of two individuals considered suspects in the deaths of a Willard Couple.

U.S. Marshals arrested Tony and Windy Friend Wednesday at the lot #10 home they were occupying at 3155 W. Brower Street in Springfield.

Both Tony Friend, 44, and Windy Friend, 31, were charged with possessing methamphetamine. Friend was also arrested for weapons violations. He was previously convicted for unlawful use of a weapon and domestic assault.

In court papers filed in support of the arrest, officers said Tony and Windy Friend are suspects in the homicides of Rebecca and Russell Porter, who disappeared from their home northeast of Willard in April 2011. They say Tony Friend threatened a deputy and the detective's family, as well as and federal and state judicial centers.

WHAT OFFICERS FOUND

When deputies search the home on Brower, they found drugs and illegal weapons. Officers found the home boarded up and doors installed with extra bolts.

"It was apparent that Tony L. Friend has taken substantial steps in fortifying his residence against an imminent extraction," wrote Greene County deputy William Bayer in support of the arrest.

A motion of detention filed in U.S. Western District court notes Tony Friend "has made threatening statements about blowing up a courthouse, and regarding Detective Sergeant Scott Britton of the Greene County Sheriff’s Department and his family. The defendant has also made threatening statements about actions he would take if law enforcement attempted to arrest him."

Officers also found modified paintball guns in the home with possible gun powder residue inside the barrels. Deputies found shotgun shells that fit inside the paintball gun barrels.

The bodies of Rebecca and Russell Porter were found in Taney County last summer. Investigators say they were murdered.

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