PIERCE CO., Wash. — Investigators say Jonathan Harris left a trail of evidence the night he killed 28-year-old Nicole White that led to his arrest and the discovery of her body.
QUICK FACTS:
- Mother of two disappeared after meeting a man at a bar
- Jonathan Daniel Harris, 29, is charged with second-degree murder
- Search dogs led detectives to body
Detectives booked Harris, 29, into the Pierce County Jail Tuesday after piecing together a combination of surveillance video, electronic signatures and human blood.
“It’s a very complicate case,” said Pierce County Sheriff’s spokesman detective Ed Troyer.
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White was last seen with Harris at Jeeper’s bar in Spanaway on the night of June 6 shortly after the two met online. Surveillance cameras inside showed the two together before she disappeared.
After White’s car was found dumped near an abandoned quarry near Graham, detectives focused on Harris searching his home.
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According to a probable cause affidavit they found a sweatshirt Harris was seen wearing in the video with blood on it that turned out to be the victim's. Detectives said Harris' cellphone records helped guide searchers to a remote road near Lake Kapowsin where White's body was found severely decomposed, wrapped in a tarp and rolled down a ravine.
Detectives also had photos and GPS information from an interlock device on Harris' vehicle. He was required to use the device following a drunken driving arrest.
Each time Harris blew into the Breathalyzer to start his truck the interlock took pictures and recorded his location and that's where searchers looked for White's body ,according to a probable cause affidavit.
“And one of the guys that had a search dog up there came and picked a good area where all this came together and spent a couple of days,” said Troyer. “And it paid off, we found her.”
Harris has been charged with second-degree murder. He is expected to appear in court Wednesday.