KOLD-13 News
www.kold.comMAN CAUGHT DRIVING WITH WIFE’S NAKED CORPSE
An Oklahoma man was caught driving with his wife’s naked body in the passenger seat after stopping for a meal at a fast food restaurant.
“Right now, we are at the beginning of the investigation so we don’t have information on how much bigger it can get," said Sgt. Kristie Barnette, public information officer for the Eloy Police Department.
Rodney Puckett, 70, was pulled over just off of Interstate 10 in Eloy (AZ) after going through the drive-thru lane of a fast food restaurant on Toltec Road.
“I kept telling my coworker, I can’t believe what I’m seeing before my eyes," said Maria Davis, the Carl’s Jr. employee working when Puckett pulled up.
Davis said Puckett was honking his horn and appeared to be naked. But, it was a body in the passenger seat that really caught Davis off guard.
“What most caught my attention was her. I knew she was face down with her legs up in the air. It wasn’t normal," Davis said. “There was like a blue cover he had in the front, and he was like trying to cover her, like her behind, but her legs were still sticking up in the air.”
Police said the naked body of Puckett’s wife, Linda, was positioned upside down. Davis said she tried to stall to get a license plate number or more information.
“I was shaking, scared," Davis said. "My heart felt like it was going to stop, it was beating so fast. I was trying to keep eye contact with him, but I was scared.”
A detective with EPD happened to walk into the restaurant to use the facilities as Puckett was in the drive-thru. A customer alerted the detective to the dead woman in the car. Puckett was stopped just after pulling out of the parking lot.
During the investigation, Sgt. Barnette said they learned the Pucketts stayed at a hotel in El Paso, Texas, the evening before.