OSBI Continues Search For Evidence In Homicide Of Carina Saunders

An excavation unearths possible new evidence in the 2011 killing of Carina Saunders.

Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation spokeswoman Jessica Brown said items of interest were found during the two day excavation at 504 N. Oakdale Drive.

The items will now be forensically tested to determine if they are connected to the unsolved homicide.

Such forensic testing could take some time. The killing of Carina Saunders dates back to 2011. So, any evidence found would be five years old. 

Saunders was found dismembered in a duffel bag in a field in Bethany and parts were missing.

Her clothing has never been recovered. 

"This family has been through hell and we want to help them have some type of closure," said Brown.

Only recently, investigators got a tip leading them to the previous home of Kenny Richards.

Richards, a known associate of Carina Saunders, was initially questioned by Bethany Police Department. He was never arrested.

"He picked her up ... which would make him the last person she was with when our family saw her alive last," she said.

Richards' home is tied to other suspicious activity.

Five months after Saunders' murder, Richards reported the death of a 22-year-old Night Trips employee, according to Oklahoma City police reports.

Richards claimed he found the young woman lying in a pool of blood in the living room of the home in March 2012, according to a police report.

A search warrant filed after the discovery indicates the woman had trauma to her body consistent with homicide.  

No specifics of the injuries were detailed in the warrant. 

Richards has not given comment.