Deputies search for body of missing Largo woman after arresting boyfriend
NEW PORT RICHEY, Fla. - Pasco County deputies have arrested the boyfriend of a Largo woman who disappeared last week and charged him with second-degree murder, but investigators say they haven't found her body and the man they arrested isn't cooperating.
Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco said on Monday that Collin Scott Knapp, 30, has been arrested and charged with the second-degree murder of Kathleen Moore.
Nocco said Moore’s body has not been found and asked for information from the public in that effort. The sheriff did not say what led his office to believe Moore was dead, however, Moore's blood had been found on clothes thrown in a dumpster near Knapp’s place of employment.
Missing flier for Kathleen Moore (L) mugshot of Collin Knapp (R) from Pasco County Sheriff's Office
Nocco said his detectives were "begging" Knapp for the location of Moore’s body, but said Knapp was "very cold" and would not cooperate with the investigation.
The sheriff gave a timeline of events that his investigators have been able to piece together, so far.
Nocco said on November 28, Moore and Knapp left Largo after being with friends at a bar. Friends said the couple had been arguing.
Later that night, Knapp was seen at a 7-Eleven on Carmel Avenue near his home. The sheriff said Knapp claimed Moore was in the car at that time, however, surveillance video did not give a clear view inside Knapp's vehicle.
Knapp claimed Moore went with him to his home and left on foot with her backpack Sunday morning, Nocco said, adding that there was no evidence of Moore’s whereabouts during that time or since then. Investigators said there was no evidence of any rideshare companies, like Lyft or Uber, being dispatched in the area during that time.
Investigators said about 30 hours elapsed between the last time Moore was seen alive and when she was reported missing.
Last week, investigators searched a Spring Hill landfill for the contents of a dumpster from Knapp's place of employment. That search turned up clothes with Moore's blood on them. Investigators said they believed the clothes belonged to Collin Knapp.
That's when the sheriff’s office was able to get a search warrant for Knapp’s home. Investigators arrested Knapp Monday and charged him with second-degree murder.
Nocco seemed to attribute Moore’s death to domestic violence, based on reports from friends and family accounts of their relationship. Investigators said the couple had been together for about 5 years.
Last week, Moore’s cell phone was found in a different dumpster, behind a Walgreens near Knapp's home in Pasco County.
Before she was reported missing, Moore’s boss at Whiskey Wings in St. Pete noticed something wasn't right; Moore wasn't responding to texts or answering her phone.
"I called, it went straight to voicemail, so I knew that's when her phone was off," recalled Jaimie Poe. "She was scheduled to be here at work Monday night, when she didn't show up or call, something was up, so I called police first thing Tuesday morning."
Friends and family spent Sunday passing out flyers to drivers at the intersection of State Road 54 and Seven Springs Boulevard. They also searched a wooded area near Seven Springs a few blocks from where she was last seen.
"She's just the most energetic, full of life, positive person you could ever meet," offered Katia Konicea. "She's just, she draws you in like that, that's why there's so many people that are worried about her. It's like you meet her once and you're so drawn in by her positivity."
Anyone with information about this case is asked to call 727-847-8102, option 7.