http://news14.com/content/local_news/triangle/598903/warrants-unsealed-in-cooper-murder/Default.aspx Warrants show husband focus in death
Updated 09/03/2008 06:43 AM
By: Heather Moore
RALEIGH -- The husband of a murdered Cary woman extensively cleaned the couple’s home and the trunk of his BMW the day she went missing, according to search warrants released Tuesday.
Police have maintained they do not have a suspect in the murder of Nancy Cooper, who was reported missing July 12 and turned up dead two days later a few miles from her home.
But Nancy's friends say they have suspected her husband, Brad Cooper, from the beginning. They believe the search warrants make it clear that her husband, Brad Cooper, is the main focus of the investigation.
"My heart was pounding when I read [the search warrants,]" explained Cary resident Janet Scott. She was one of hundreds who helped search for Nancy when friends reported her missing.
"I think [the search warrants] confirm what all of us have thought all along, that even though there's no person of interest, obviously Brad Cooper is being focused upon in this investigation," she continued.
In the search warrants, Brad Cooper said he cleaned their home that morning because he and Nancy had recently gotten into an argument about how messy the house was when she returned from a vacation with her family.
He said he cleaned the trunk of his BMW because he had spilled gasoline in there, but authorities noted that the trunk did not smell like gasoline and Brad Cooper only vacuumed the trunk; he didn’t use any type of cleaner. The rest of the car was not clean, however, and was cluttered with mail and receipts.
Police found DNA evidence in the form of hairs on other areas of Brad Cooper’s BMW, including hair on the interior trunk lid, hair on the bottom of the front right bumper, hair on the trunk floor, and hair on the left front tire well. They also found grass from the right front seat.
The search warrants show the couple was having marital issues and they were preparing to separate. The Coopers were also having a contentious custody battle, and Brad Cooper was holding onto his daughters’ passports so Nancy Cooper could not take them back to Canada. He even kept one of the passports at his office in Research Triangle Park.
Police seized several computers and computer parts from the Coopers’ home and Brad Cooper’s office, as well, citing the collection of digital evidence, but the search warrants did not indicate what kind of evidence that was.
One unexplained piece of evidence was the fact that Brad Cooper had small red marks and scratches on the back of his neck. Cooper did not provide an explanation for the marks.
Brad Cooper told police his wife went out for a jog the day she disappeared, but he never reported her missing. A concerned friend of Nancy Cooper called police and even told police that Cooper was going through a messy divorce.
"It's a lot of circumstantial things, but it sure is incriminating," Scott said.
Brad Cooper has not been named as a suspect, and police have said he has cooperated.
See the Warrants:
Warrant 1
http://content.news14.com/Warrant1.pdfWarrant 2
http://content.news14.com/Warrant2.pdfWarrant 3
http://content.news14.com/Warrant3.pdfStatement from Cary Police:
“Given their extreme consequences, homicide cases call for extraordinary care in protecting the integrity of the investigation and the rights of those members of our community that may be part of it, which is why we’ve supported and appreciated the Court’s decision to protect search warrants and related documents. When the details of search warrants do become public, everyone must remember that investigations are as much about ruling things out as ruling things in and that it’s the evidence that comes from a search warrant – not the warrant itself – that makes a difference in a case. We work closely with the Wake County District Attorney’s Office and other agencies in gathering and evaluating evidence as we seek the truth in every crime, and it’s only when we are absolutely sure and can prove it according to the letter of the law that we make the arrest(s). While we all want every case to be resolved right away, certainty under the law must be our timetable.” Town of Cary Police Chief Pat Bazemore
Statement from Cooper family:
“Donna and I have spoken with our family today on the eve of the first release of information in this case in several weeks. Our family continues to have great confidence in the Cary Police Department and applaud their efforts on behalf of one of us. We echo the comments Chief Bazemore made on Nancy’s recent birthday; a resolution of this case would indeed be a wonderful gift to all of us. We implore all the agencies engaged in this case to expedite a resolution.” Garry Rentz
Statement from Brad Cooper's attorney:
"Three search warrants related to the Nancy Cooper Case were released this afternoon. This has been widely reported as a meaningful development. The release of these search warrants makes the public the state of the police investigation as it was some six weeks ago. They contain nothing new and shed no light on who killed Nancy Cooper.
In any homicide investigation, and important early step is to check into the people who surround the victim. As Nancy's husband, the Cary Police rightly scrutinized Brad Cooper at the beginning of their inquiry. Spouses, other romantic entanglement, friends and associates are among the first people an investigator must seek to rule out as suspects. Since that time, warrants were served, searches were conducted and items were collected and presumably studied in depth to determine if they held any evidentiary value. The police investigation has also had access to information received as a result of the extensive cooperation that Brad Cooper has given and continues to offer. Despite all of this, the police have made no arrest and named no suspects. had substantial, credible evidence pointed to Brad Cooper, he would be in custody.
We fervently hope the efforts of the police will allow them, very soon, to arrest the criminal or criminals who committed the heinous attack on Nancy and to bring peace and closure to the Cooper family. We ask again that anyone with information that might assist in the identification and capture of Nancy's murderer or murderers please give that information to the Cary police. If you are uncomfortable going directly to the police, you can instead contact us at
www.kurtzandblum.com through our Nancy Cooper Investigation page. To date, we have turned over to the police all information received through this site; we intend to continue this cooperation. Keeping your information to yourself helps no one. If you know anything that could be helpful in solving this case, please bring it to light as soon as possible."
Howard Kurtz
Seth Blum
