The suspect charged with online impersonation connected to the disappearance and death of Brownwood resident Michele Reiter was transferred to the Brown County Jail Wednesday from Tom Green County.
Lanny Bush, 53, is facing online impersonation charges in Tom Green County and Brown County in connection to the Reiter case. Bush was indicted on the charge in Brown County last November.
According to court documents, Lanny Marvin Bush admitted to authorities that he set up a fake Facebook account under the name “Rocky Switzer” in order to communicate with his ex-girlfriend Michele Reiter, with intent to do her harm. It further states that Bush admitted to investigators that he met with Reiter on two separate occasions on September 10th, 2012. Bush acknowledged sending a text message from Reiter’s phone after the suspected time of her disappearance, according to the documents.
Reiter was last seen on September 10th, 2012 around 6:30 p.m. when she left for a dinner date that evening, according to her roommate. According to police reports, Reiter’s roommate reported her missing on September 11th, 2012 after Reiter did not come home for the night. She also did not report for work that morning at Home Depot, where she had worked for approximately 4 years. The missing Brownwood woman’s vehicle was found abandoned Wednesday, September 13th, 2012 at the Bert Massey Sports Complex. Reiter’s body was found by Texas Ranger Danny Crawford at 10:30 a.m. on September 24 in a “shallow, clandestine type grave,” in Coleman County, according to court documents.
Court documents also note that Bush denies being responsible for Reiter’s disappearance.
Bush was arrested in Tom Green County on the charge of online impersonation and a parole violation on Thursday, September 20, 2012. He is now being held in Brown County Jail on these Tom Green County charges and an indictment from Brown County for online impersonation with bonds totaling $275,000.
Although no murder charge has been filed, the Brownwood Police Department has stated that the investigation into the case is continuing. Authorities could not be reached for comment about the prisoner transfer Wednesday afternoon.
Tom Green County court notes state that since Brown County has the same charge pending, the Brown County case should proceed first.
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