Progress continues in two murder cases pending in Kosciusko Circuit Court.

In one case, the defendant is seeking to be released from custody on bond. The other case has been set for trial in February.

Jason Fisher, 23, of Middlebury, was set to appear in court Thursday for both a hearing on a motion for release on bail and a pretrial hearing. Fisher is charged with murder in the Jan. 15 shooting death of Kathy Vroman, 48, of Milford. However, Judge Rex Reed continued the matter until 9:30 a.m. Feb. 1 because there wasn't enough time on the calendar Thursday to address the issues to be considered.

Bond was initially set for Fisher, but Reed ordered him held without bond since shortly after he was taken into custody last year.

New charges against Fisher were recently filed. He now also faces charges of burglary and theft in connection with a December 2000 break-in to Rice Ford in Warsaw and the theft of more than $100,000 worth of vehicles from the lot.

Three other men, including Vroman's husband, have already been sentenced for their roles in the burglary.

Authorities have indicated that Vroman's murder was connected to an auto theft ring based at Country Car Co. in Milford, a business owned by Fisher.

Fisher was set to go on trial last month for the murder charge, but the matter was continued because of the new information provided in the case that led to the additional charges. A new trial date has not been set.

Christoval Dimas, 26, of Ligonier, will face a jury trial in February, with an anticipated five days set aside for the case. The trial is set to begin Feb. 22.

Dimas is charged with murder in the death of Crystal Gayle Homister, whose burned remains were found April 6, 2000, near Lake Wawasee. Dimas was indicted for the murder in September 2000.

Homister, 22, of Elkhart, was reported missing in Elkhart County on Jan. 7, 2000, by family members concerned with her disappearance. The remains found near Lake Wawasee were identified as Homister's three days after they were found.

The body was burned sometime prior to the remains being found, and 85 percent to 90 percent was recovered at the scene, Kosciusko County Sheriff Aaron Rovenstine said at the time of the investigation.

Dimas was set to be tried in September, but the case was continued at the request of defense attorney R. Steven Hearn, who previously tried to have the charges dismissed because his client hadn't gone to trial within a year of being charged. Dimas has been in police custody for this and other crimes (in Kosciusko and Noble counties) since before he was indicted for the murder. [[In-content Ad]]