Florida man allegedly killed girlfriend in 'brutal' attack and said she flew to Jamaica
02/11/2025 12:07 pm PST
AUBURNDALE, Fla. (TCN) -- Authorities recently arrested a 46-year-old Florida man in Georgia on suspicion of killing his girlfriend and lying to police.
According to the Auburndale Police Department, on Feb. 6, officials launched a missing person investigation after Stacy Powell failed to log in to her work computer since Feb. 4. Officers responded to her home, where they made contact with a handyman hired to perform cabinet repairs. The handyman told police no one was home at the time.
During their conversation, Powell’s boyfriend, Andrew Ridgeway, reportedly called the handyman and asked about officers’ presence. In a press conference posted by WFLA-TV, Auburndale Police Chief Terry Storie said Ridgeway had installed security cameras so he could see they were there.
An investigating officer then spoke with Ridgeway on the phone, and he claimed he was in North Carolina with Powell’s grandmother. According to police, Ridgeway also said his girlfriend flew to Jamaica on Feb. 5 to see her ill father and didn’t know when she would be back. Investigators soon determined Ridgeway had lied to authorities, as Powell’s father lives in North Carolina and her grandmother resides in Florida. The father also contacted law enforcement regarding his daughter because he couldn’t reach her for two days.
While executing a search warrant at Powell’s home, police said detectives found "evidence indicating that Stacy had been brutally attacked and murdered."
According to Storie, investigators found Powell deceased in the residence, but the attack was so "savage" that they had to wait until the following afternoon to receive positive identification. Officials suspect she died on Feb. 4.
On the morning of Feb. 7, authorities located Ridgeway driving his girlfriend’s vehicle in Augusta, Georgia, and arrested him. He faces charges in Florida of providing false information to law enforcement and homicide. Prior to his girlfriend’s death, Storie said Ridgeway had previously been charged with various misdemeanors.
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