Murder of Mackenzie Cowell

Mackenzie Cowell was 17 years old at the time of her disappearance. She lived in Orondo, Washington and was a senior at Wenatchee High School, where she was a member of the school dance team. She also worked as a model and studied cosmetology at the Wenatchee Academy of Hair Design in downtown Wenatchee.[1]

Cowell went missing shortly after 3:00 p.m. on February 9, 2010. She was last seen on surveillance video leaving the Academy of Hair Design, walking to her car and driving away. She had told classmates that she would be back in less than 15 minutes.[2] Around this time, she sent a text message to her boyfriend that said, "Hey, what's up". This was the last time she is known to have used her phone.[1]

Cowell's father attempted to contact her at around 5:40 p.m., but his calls went straight to voicemail. Her family became increasingly concerned after she missed her 8 p.m. curfew. Later that night, a homeowner in remote Chelan County reported an abandoned car near his driveway.[1] Police traced the car's registration to Cowell's father, who informed them Cowell was missing. The car was located near Mission Ridge, about 40 miles (64 km) from her home in Orondo.[3] Cowell's purse and some clothes were found in the car, although her debit card and cell phone were missing. According to police, only one pair of footprints was found at the scene.[4]

The Chelan County Sheriff's Office began the investigation into Cowell's disappearance by using a helicopter to search the area near where her car was found. Search warrants were issued for Cowell's phone records and social media activity. At the request of the sheriff, the FBI was called in to assist with the investigation.[4]

On the afternoon of February 13, Cowell's body was discovered on the banks of the Columbia River near Quincy, Washington, at a resort community about 20 miles (32 km) away from Wenatchee.[1][3] She was found fully clothed, with her feet in the water. A vacant house for sale was located about 50 yards (46 m) from where her body was found.[1]

An autopsy determined the cause of death had been strangulation and stab wounds to the neck. Cowell also suffered blunt force trauma to the head.[5] The killer had apparently attempted to cut off one of her arms after her death.[6] A knife was found, still stuck into her shoulder.[7] Investigators found no evidence that Cowell had been sexually assaulted.[5]

On February 25, around 1,800 people attended a memorial service for Cowell, which was held at the Town Toyota Center in Wenatchee.[8]

The investigation was headed by the Mackenzie Cowell Task Force, a multi-agency police group assembled after the recovery of Cowell's body. The task force included law enforcement agents from the cities of Wenatchee and East Wenatchee, and from the counties of Chelan and Douglas.[9] An FBI agent and two officials from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement also assisted the task force.[10] The case was the largest multi-agency investigation in the Wenatchee area since an attempted serial bombing in 1997.[9] Police interviewed over 800 people throughout the course of the investigation.[2]

Police initially looked into Cowell's boyfriend, Joaquin Villasano; as well as her mother's boyfriend, Joey Fisher. According to police, Villasano had failed a polygraph when asked if he knew what happened to Cowell. Fisher had allegedly gotten into an argument with Cowell the day before she went missing. However, both Villasano and Fisher were later completely cleared by police.[7]

The next lead in the case came from Liz Reid, a college student, police informant and former drug dealer. Reid told police that two drug dealers, Sam Cuevas and Emmanuel Cerros, had murdered Cowell in a case of mistaken identity. The two had supposedly believed Cowell was an informant. Reid claims she saw a snuff film of the murder, and that Cuevas admitted to her: "'I choked that bitch to shut her up".[7]

Reid was able to describe the murder weapon before it was made public, and gave police a ring which she claimed had belonged to Cowell. She said Cerros had sent her to the murder site to find the ring.[7] None of Cowell's family members recognized the ring as belonging to Mackenzie. Reid later retracted her claim of seeing a video of the murder. As a result, police began to question Reid's credibility. Cuevas and Cerros were interviewed by police and produced alibis, witness statements and phone records placing them elsewhere on the day of Cowell's disappearance.[11]

Prosecutors upgraded Wilson's charge from second-degree to first-degree murder in April 2011, stating that his actions constituted premeditation. If convicted, he would face a sentence of 20 to 26 years in prison.[14] Before the trial began, Wilson rejected a plea deal in which he would have received a prison sentence of about six and a half years in exchange for pleading guilty to first-degree manslaughter.[15]

Wilson's defense team was led by John Henry Browne, a prominent Seattle attorney who had previously represented high-profile defendants such as Ted Bundy and Colton Harris Moore. Browne intended to argue that Cowell's blood had been planted in Wilson's apartment. According to Browne, more blood should have been found at the apartment, given the violent nature of Cowell's death.[7] The presiding judge ruled that the defense would be allowed to present evidence implicating Cuevas and Cerros as the killers. The judge also ruled that the prosecution would not be allowed to bring up Wilson's work history at area funeral homes, his tattoo of Hannibal Lecter, or his online activity on DeviantArt and on serial killer forums.[11]

After jury selection for the trial had begun, Wilson accepted a new plea deal. He pleaded guilty to the first-degree manslaughter of Mackenzie Cowell, as well as first-degree robbery for taking her cell phone and second-degree assault for an unrelated case. He was sentenced to 14 years and 3 months in prison.[2] Wilson would later maintain his innocence, stating that he only pleaded guilty because he did not believe he would receive a fair trial. According to Wilson, around 80% of juror candidates answered questionnaires stating either that they believed Wilson was guilty or that they had knowledge of evidence which was ordered to be suppressed at trial. Wilson filed a motion to withdraw his guilty plea, but the motion was rejected by the Washington Court of Appeals. He is imprisoned at Larch Corrections Center and is scheduled to be eligible for parole in 2023.[16]

• List of solved missing persons cases
• List of murdered American children

• Van Sant, Peter (correspondent) (August 9, 2014). "Secrets of the River". 48 Hours. Season 26. Episode 6. CBS.