Man arrested for murder of wife who vanished in 2017, allegedly faked birthday text to her dad
A Pennsylvania man has been arrested for allegedly killing his wife who vanished in 2017, prosecutors said.
Anna Maciejewska, a Poland native, moved to the U.S. in 1997 and married Allen Gould in 2006, according to the criminal complaint. The couple's son was 4 years old when she disappeared.
On April 11, 2017, Maciejewska, 43, was reported missing by a co-worker and a friend; the next day, Gould also reported her missing, the Chester County District Attorney's Office said Wednesday.
MORE: Mother allegedly buys ammunition, tactical gear for son's planned 'mass targeted violence' at middle school: Officials
But evidence including phone records, financial records and witness accounts point to Maciejewska stopping her normal routine on March 29, and the last time anyone saw her or heard from her was March 28, prosecutors said.
On March 30, Maciejewska's dad in Poland received a text from his daughter's phone with a birthday message in Polish that had grammatical errors, prosecutors said. "Police later determined the same message was researched via Google Translate, despite that Maciejewska spoke Polish fluently," prosecutors said in a statement.
A printout of that same Google Translate message was found in Gould's home, according to the criminal complaint.
Gould told police he last saw his wife on the morning of April 10 when she left for work, but her car's internal system showed it was never driven that day, according to the criminal complaint. Maciejewska's car was discovered in May in an apartment complex parking lot nearly 2 miles from their home, the complaint said.
When officers responded to their home for the missing persons report, they noticed Maciejewska's iPhone and iPad were on the kitchen table and her phone was "in a startup/update status, as if it had been reset," according to the criminal complaint. Gould allegedly told police his wife was updating her phone on the morning she went missing but it was taking too long to finish updating so she left it at home when she rushed out the door to work, the document said. All of her belongings were left at home besides the keys to her car, the document said.
Officers found divorce paperwork at the couple's home, the complaint said, and Maciejewska was taking a "Divorce 101" class.
Maciejewska's friend told police that Maciejewska wasn't happy with her marriage and that the couple disagreed on how to raise their son, according to the criminal complaint. Maciejewska allegedly told the friend she wanted a divorce but her husband disagreed; she also allegedly told the friend she and Gould "set a firm date to discuss a divorce," according to the criminal complaint.
A friend of Maciejewska told police that their son having dual citizenship and a Polish passport was a "point of contention" because Gould "feared he would have no parental rights" if she took the child to Poland, the complaint said.
MORE: Menendez brothers win resentencing fight: What's next for their case?
Maciejewska "visited over 150 websites pertaining to divorce, signs of emotional abuse, psychological abuse, emotional blackmail, emotional abuse, narcissistic personality disorder, domestic abuse vs. normal martial conflict, and how to divorce an emotionally abusive husband," the complaint said.
Gould allegedly told police "they had spoken about a divorce" but decided to use their townhouse "as a place to decompress rather than separate completely," according to the complaint.
After Gould reported Maciejewska missing, he allegedly "stopped helping police attempt to locate his wife, wrote a check for a criminal defense attorney, clicked on an article about strangulation" and got a second cellphone, according to the complaint.
Gould, 60, was arrested Wednesday and is being held without bail on charges including first-degree murder and tampering with physical evidence, prosecutors said. His preliminary hearing is set for May 27.
"He's been living under the specter of this for eight years," Gould's defense attorney, Evan Kelly, told ABC News. "At this point he just wants to clear his name in the court of law."
Kelly declined to comment on any details of the case.
Maciejewska's body has never been found, according to the criminal complaint.
Man arrested for murder of wife who vanished in 2017, allegedly faked birthday text to her dad originally appeared on abcnews.go.com
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
23 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Woman jailed for sharing baby monkey torture videos
A Scottish mother-of-two involved in a global monkey torture network has been jailed for more than two years. Natalie Herron, 39, from Airdrie in North Lanarkshire, joined online chat groups which encouraged torture of macaques by offenders based in Indonesia. Airdrie Sheriff Court heard how she became a group administrator for the network, which was exposed by a BBC investigation, and shared hundreds of images and videos of the abuse. The group paid for baby long-tailed macaques to be taken from their mothers in Indonesia before they were tortured and killed. WARNING: This article contains distressing details of animal torture. The acts of cruelty included crucifixion, machete attacks and one video that showed a baby monkey being dipped in boiling oil. The court heard how Herron had made contact online with Michael Macartney, the US-based ringleader of the network who used the alias "The Torture King". Global monkey torture ring exposed by BBC This is the first time someone has been sentenced in Scotland for cruelty that took place abroad. Investigators from the National Crime Agency alerted Police Scotland and a raid on Herron's home in 2022 discovered an iPhone with 1,084 images and videos of monkey torture. Investigators discovered 4,000 messages on a WhatsApp group which had been sent by Herron discussing torture and hatred of the animals. Messages included one that said: "I am shocked how easily the drill went through the skull, it was like butter." Another message read: "Trying to find a video where they will kill the mum and the babies watch." Herron was sentenced to two years and three months in prison. She had earlier admitted two charges of possessing and distributing obscene material, namely videos depicting animal torture, between October 2021 and September 2022 at her home address. She admitted a further charge of behaving in a threatening or abusive manner likely to cause fear or alarm by sending messages to various online and social media groups which described and promoted animal torture. The court was told she made payments to Macartney but she claimed it was not for the videos but to "help him". Members of the online group, who claimed they were angered at the monkeys destroying land in Indonesia, voted on proposed methods of torture. Nicky Matteo, defending, said: "In all the years I have been practising I have not seen a case like this. It has not been a pleasant experience. "She [Herron] has had horrific problems in life and she built up a connection with other group members. "She was trying to ingratiate herself with other members, it was a false sense of escapism. "She is no longer the person that was responsible for sending those messages. She recognises the severity of it." Sentencing Herron, Sheriff Derek Livingston said: "The fact you not only joined these groups but then helped to facilitate them only helped to increase the animals' suffering." The BBC investigation uncovered the network that began life on YouTube before it moved to private groups on the messaging app Telegram. Macartney, 51, was jailed last year after pleading guilty in the US state of Virginia to conspiracy to create and distribute animal cruelty videos. He was sentenced to three years and four months in jail. A month later, Adriana Orme, 56, from Upton-upon-Severn, and Holly Le Gresley, 37, from Kidderminster, were jailed after admitting being part of the global network. Police Scotland officers said it was one of the most horrific cases they had dealt with and the material was like nothing they had seen before. Det Sgt Karen Murray said: "This was a long and complex investigation which involved a number of organisations including the National Crime Agency (NCA) and the National Wildlife Crime Unit (NWCU) and was the first of its kind in the UK. "Thanks to the work of these organisations, Herron will now face the consequences of her actions which contributed to the cruel torture and immense suffering of a number of innocent animals." She added: "This was one of the most disturbing and graphic cases we have worked on and we hope this sentence shows that even though the cruelty took place abroad, that these types of crimes will not be tolerated and we will use all the tools at our disposal to hold people accountable." Det Insp Mark Harrison, from the National Wildlife Crime Unit, said: "This investigation is truly shocking and unsettling. "The people involved are not just motivated by money, this is also about getting some sort of gratification from watching animals being tortured and then sharing those images with others." Procurator fiscal Faye Cook said: "The videos and images that Natalie Herron bought and shared online are horrendous. "These animals were shown to be suffering extreme pain. This has been a distressing case for the prosecution team and police, but we have held Natalie Herron accountable. "Individuals involved in the distribution of graphic and obscene online content depicting violent torture should be forewarned that this behaviour is not only repellent, but is against the law and will be prosecuted." Anyone who has any concerns around such behaviour is asked to contact Police Scotland. US ringleader in global monkey torture network sent to jail Women jailed over sadistic monkey torture videos
Yahoo
23 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Jury views Hazleton murder footage; Cell phone mapping placed alleged killer near scene
Jun. 10—WILKES-BARRE — Surveillance footage from inside Craig's Food Mart in Hazleton showed Ashokkumar Patel mopping the floor when confronted by a masked gunman who stormed into the business sand shoved him into a closet. Seconds later, he is seen falling to the floor with a gunshot wound to his neck. Footage also showed the masked gunman go directly to a cabinet behind the cash register counter and stole a money bag that, specially assigned Assistant District Attorney Drew McLaughlin and Assistant District Attorney Gerry Scott allege, contained more than $14,000. Video footage of Patel's murder inside the food mart on Dec. 12, 2020, was played to the Luzerne County jury Tuesday by McLaughlin and Scott in their case against Jafet De Jesus Rodriguez, 44, charged with an open count of criminal homicide, robbery and theft. While the killer was not able to be identified by video footage, McLaughlin and Scott used cellular phone mapping in their effort to convince the jury Rodriguez was the gunman. Pennsylvania State Police Corporal Christopher Hill, a supervisor for the Northeast Computer Crime Lab Unit, testified Tuesday about how he forensically extracted data from Rodriguez's Apple 11 iPhone. The data was then analyzed by Hazleton City Police Detective Brett Green, who used the iPhone's global positioning to pinpoint its locations before and after Patel was killed. Green testified about her analysis: —8:09 p.m. Rodriguez's iPhone was in the area of Craig's Food Mart on West Broad Street, Hazleton. —8:45-8:47 p.m. Traveling on West Broad Street. —9:03 p.m. In the area of Rodriguez's residence at 131 E. Cranberry Avenue, Hazleton. —9:05 p.m. Traveling in the direction of Craig's Food Mart. —9:07 p.m. In the area of Craig's Food Mart. —9:11 p.m. Traveling on North Church Street, Hazleton. —9:13 p.m. In the area of Rodriguez's residence on East Cranberry Avenue. —9:18 p.m. Traveling north on North Cedar Street. —9:19 p.m. In the area of 410 E. Diamond Ave., Hazleton. —9:23 p.m. In the area of Rodriguez's residence. McLaughlin and Scott used Green's testimony to illustrate to the jury that Rodriguez was likely at Craig's Food Mart when Patel was fatally shot. On cross-examination by Rodriguez's co-defense lawyer, Michael O. Palermo Jr., Green said she had no way of knowing if someone else had Rodriguez's phone the night Patel was killed. Palermo is assisting co-defense attorneys, Michael A. Sklarosky and Joseph F. Sklarosky Jr. in representing Rodriguez. Hazleton City Police Detective Lieutenant William J. Gallagher testified, giving a second-by-second illustration of video footage showing Patel mopping the floor, and a masked gunman wearing a red sweatshirt and gloves rushing inside the business and shoving Patel into a closet at 9:07 p.m. A second after being shoved into the closet, the masked gunman emerges and runs behind the counter, directly to a floor cabinet to steal a money bag. Patel falls to the floor with his head in camera view, bleeding from a gunshot wound to his neck. About 30 seconds after falling, Patel manages to crawl to the cash register, where he calls 911. McLaughlin and Scott played Patel's 911 call to the jury, but only he could be heard grunting. Forensic pathologist Dr. Gary Ross, who conducted the autopsy, testified Monday that the gunshot severed Patel's tongue, making him unable to speak. During the early days of the investigation, Gallagher said additional video footage was gathered that showed the masked gunman arriving in a dark-colored Jeep Grand Cherokee at Craig's Food Mart and quickly leaving within a minute. Using investigative sources only available to law enforcement, it became known Rodriguez owned a dark-colored Jeep Cherokee. McLaughlin and Scott allege GPS data from Rodriguez's phone led detectives to an auto-detailing garage at 410 E. Diamond Ave., where Rodriguez worked. Found inside a garbage bag hidden in a stove inside the garage was a red sweatshirt, gloves and a face mask, prosecutors told the jury. During his opening statement to the jury on Monday, McLaughlin said Patel's blood was found on the sweatshirt. Michael Sklarosky told the jury Monday the investigation was "sloppy," an abundance of evidence was not tested or disregarded, and there was a rush to arrest someone or anyone, noting Rodriguez's DNA was not found on the sweatshirt, gloves and mask. Featured Local Savings Featured Local Savings
Yahoo
23 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Former jail employee and girlfriend of escaped New Orleans inmate arrested in connection with case
NEW ORLEANS (WGNO) — Officials with the U.S. Marshals have announced the arrest of a woman in connection to the May breakout at the Orleans Parish jail in New Orleans. U.S. Marshals officials said Darriana Burton, 28, was arrested in New Orleans on Monday, June 9. She had been wanted on a warrant for conspiracy to commit simple escape, a felony, from the Louisiana Attorney General's Office. Burton is a former jail employee and the girlfriend of Derrick Groves, one of two inmates who is still at large after the escape, the Associated Press reported. The other at-large escapee has been identified as Antoine Massey. Escaped inmate known as 'Devil in the Ozarks' found a 'short distance' from prison: sheriff Groves, Massey, and eight other inmates escaped from the Orleans Parish Prison on May 16 by yanking open a faulty cell door, removing a toilet, crawling through a hole, and scaling a barbed wire fence in the early morning hours when a lone guard left to get food. Two days before the escape, Groves made a FaceTime video call to Burton using a jail-issued iPad, authorities said. During that call, she helped him speak with a man whom police did not identify. The conversation was 'intentionally vague' and appeared to coordinate communication on other, unmonitored lines, according to a police affidavit for Burton's arrest. The exchange showed Burton's direct role in helping with Groves' escape, police said in the arrest affidavit. Burton and Groves 'were in an on-again, off-again relationship for three years,' dating back to the time when she was still working in the jail, authorities said. Burton began working at the jail in 2022, but was fired after being 'arrested and charged for bringing contraband into the jail and malfeasance in office in 2023,' the attorney general's office explained. The attorney general's office reported that the Orleans Parish District Attorney's Office refused the charges in 2024. The Associated Press contributed to this report. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
