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A Ligonier man is accused of murder in the death of Crystal Gayle Homister, whose burned remains were found April 6 near Lake Wawasee.
A Kosciusko County grand jury handed down a three-count indictment Tuesday against Christoval Dimas, 25, of Ligonier. He is charged with murder, assisting a criminal and abuse of a corpse, all felonies.
Dimas is incarcerated in Noble County on charges related to this case - he allegedly threatened a law enforcement officer and a citizen in an attempt to impede the progress of the murder investigation. Dimas has been in custody at the Noble County Jail and other area jails on various charges since May 18, officials said. The extent of his criminal history was not revealed.
During a press conference this morning, Kosciusko County Prosecutor Charles Waggoner said the court accepted the grand jury's indictment this morning. Dimas will likely appear before Kosciusko Circuit Court Judge Rex Reed on an initial hearing next week.
The grand jury met for seven days since July 18 and heard testimony from 12 witnesses. The grand jury concluded Tuesday, Waggoner said.
Although Waggoner would not comment on whether Dimas is the sole suspect in this case, he said "the grand jury has not indicted any additional suspects at this time."
Dimas has been a suspect in the case since April 24, according to Tom Brindle, a retired detective sergeant with the Kosciusko County Sheriff's Department who led the Homister investigation. Brindle said authorities at first had "no idea what we were looking for" as far as a suspect was concerned. He said investigators focused on Dimas after receiving a telephone call from a Ligonier resident, who alleged that Dimas was bragging about killing Homister. Waggoner declined to comment on a motive for the murder and refused to say whether Dimas confessed to killing Homister or implicated himself in the case.
Homister was the mother of three young children, the second of whom was father by Dimas' brother, Jesse Dimas. Waggoner said he did not know whether Homister and Jesse Dimas were ever married, but confirmed that he is the father of her son, Alex. A photograph of Homister with her youngest son, Isaiah, was displayed on a table during the press conference.
The warrant information pertaining to this case was faxed to Noble County authorities today, but Waggoner said he was not aware whether Dimas has actually been served with the warrant yet. Steve Hearn of the Lemon, Armey, Hearn & Leininger law offices was appointed as Dimas' attorney "early on in the investigation" and attended this morning's press conference.
Homister was reported missing in Elkhart County on Jan. 7 by family members concerned with her disappearance.
Her remains were found by mushroom hunters in a wooded area off CR 1050N on the east side of Lake Wawasee on April 6 and were identified April 9 through dental records.
The body was burned sometime prior to being found and 85 percent to 90 percent was recovered at the scene, Kosciusko County Sheriff Aaron Rovenstine previously said.
A team of forensic anthropologists from the University of Indianapolis worked with local officials during the recovery of the remains.
Authorities said Homister's death was caused by blunt force trauma to the head. Although the charges against Dimas were filed today in Kosciusko County, that doesn't mean the murder occurred here. Waggoner said murder charges can be based on where the crime occurred or where the body is found. He would not elaborate on where he believed Homister died, but said local authorities would cooperate with Elkhart County officials if there was a strong reason for the case to be transferred there.
Dimas is formerly of Warsaw, where he attended high school, and has also lived in Milford, Nappanee, Elkhart and Ligonier, officials said.
