MARTIN COUNTY, Fla. (WFLA) – The ex-husband of a Florida mother who vanished last month has confessed to killing her, according to investigators who also say the woman’s 2-year-old daughter was nearby when she was killed.
Martin County Sheriff’s Office deputies arrested Steven Williams on a second-degree murder charge in connection with the death of his ex-wife Tricia Todd of Hobe Sound.
Martin County Sheriff William Snyder announced details about the arrest on Wednesday. Snyder said that Williams confessed to killing Todd.
Search crews are canvassing a 15-mile area on Wednesday looking for her body. The sheriff said that Williams confessed to disposing his ex-wife’s body in a wooded area near Jonathan Dickinson State Park in Martin County.
Todd died on the same night that she disappeared, according to investigators. They say her 2-year-old daughter was nearby when she was killed, WPTV reported.
Todd was reported missing after she didn’t show up to pick up her child on April 27. The 30-year-old mother was an Air Force veteran and a hospice nurse, according to NBC News.
The sheriff said Williams lives in North Carolina and deputies traveled there and brought him to Martin County. Williams was taken into custody around 8:30 p.m. on Tuesday. He is being held without bond.
