Baton Rouge, LA — The badly decomposed body of Lyntell Washington was recently found in a sugar cane field ditch in Iberville Parish, Louisiana – an area where police had been aggressively searching. Washington, who was a 40-year old teacher, was 7-months pregnant and had suddenly disappeared, which deeply worried her family members.But police have already arrested who they suspected all along of the murder – 39-year-old Robert Marks, who is the assistant principal at Brookstown Middle Magnet School (where they both worked) and the suspected father of her unborn child. He was booked on several counts of first-degree murder and first-degree feticide.
Marks was initially arrested for the kidnapping and desertion of Washington’s 3-year-old daughter, who was found wandering alone in a parking lot. That, along with statements the girl later made in interviews with investigators, led police to start an aggressive search for Washington. Marks, initially refused to cooperate with the investigation, already had a lawyer before his second arrest.
Cpl. L’Jean McKneely, a Baton Rouge Police Department spokesman, commented, “We continue to press him for information and still no answer and still no emotion. This is a heinous and senseless crime.”
But Marks’ attorney, Lionel Lon Burns, said his client has asserted his right to remain silent. When asked whether or not Marks and Washington had an affair, Burns said he is not addressing “any of the sensationalism as alleged by the Baton Rouge Police Department.” He told reporters that Marks’ wife firmly stands behind her husband, and “she asserts his innocence, as does his entire family.”
Police say, however, that they have evidence of a text message that Washington sent to Marks asking if he was trying to avoid his responsibility for “our unborn child.” Police said this shows Marks was aware that Washington was pregnant, and may have had a motive to kill her.
Meanwhile, a GoFundMe account has been created for Lyntell Washington to raise funds for her funeral. Donations can be made online at www.gofundme.com/29x64uuw