LA PORTE, Texas – Remains that were found wrapped in a blanket and tarp at a La Porte golf course earlier this month have been identified, police said.
La Porte police said the remains of Shannon Lance Ivey, 54, were found the Bay Forest Golf Course on Jan. 10.
Investigators said they believe Ivey’s death was the result of a 2016 domestic dispute between him and his ex-wife, who neighbors identified as Toni Ivey Stinnett. His remains were originally kept in a storage unit near the golf course, where they decomposed, police said.
"The body was actually relocated to the golf course and of course how that happened is under investigation," said Lt. John Krueger of the La Porte Police Department.
Neighbors said Stinnett died suddenly from an illness in October 2017. When she died, the rent on the storage unit became delinquent, resulting in the unit being cleaned out and the remains being found, investigators said.
"We're confident we're going to get to the bottom of it, but the problem is the primary suspect deceased at this time, investigators are having a slow time finding different family members and friends who can help them piece together the information," Krueger said.
The investigation led police to a home in the 5000 block of Glen Valley Drive where Ivey once lived. The current resident, Jake Holloway, said his roommate bought the house at the end of 2016, but but property records show Ivey owned the home in prior years.
"All I've really heard is that they believe it might have happened here and that the body might have been kept here in the garage for some time before going to the storage unit," he said.
Holloway said police came to the house a couple days after the remains were found and wanted to search the house.
“Because I’m not the owner of the house, it was not up to me, but they did take his contact information. But I guess they found a different lead or something else that led them somewhere else because they never came back to look through the house,” Holloway said.
The police department said Ivey lived part time in La Porte because he worked off shore.
“In this type of industrial area when someone works off shore on various platforms there are other things going on, they can be gone for long periods of time. That was a situation naturally wouldn't raise a red flag to family members and friends if individuals were gone for a long period of time, B and because of his on and off shore in La Porte it’s hard to track down when the offense might have occurred.” Krueger said.
The cause of Ivey's death is pending the medical examiner's investigation.