MUNCIE, Ind. — A Muncie man was formally charged Wednesday with murder in the death of his ex-wife.
Their divorce was final only six months ago.
Court documents point to a woman who feared for her life at times, even getting a protective order when she filed for divorce last November.
An abandoned trailer, with broken windows, along a country road in southeastern Delaware County — that’s where the Muncie Police Department said they found the body of 46-year-old Marcia Curtis after a person, who was a close friend of Curtis’ 50-year-old ex-husband, Ceaser Curtis, brought them there Thursday, explaining that Ceaser had showed him this abandoned trailer before during drives in the area.
That same person told police that Ceaser said "he did it" when asked about his ex-wife’s whereabouts.
The Delaware County Prosecutor's Office charged Ceaser Wednesday with murder, along with a charge of being a habitual offender.
Ceaser's previous convictions include arson with an intent to defraud and operating a vehicle while intoxicated.
Marcia had been reported missing by family members on Sept. 6. Arresting documents showed family told police Marcia had not showed up for work, and they had not seen her since Sept. 1. They told police Ceaser had been the last person to see her.
According to arresting documents, the close friend told police Ceaser told him he’d picked Marcia up at work, had a fight with her, slapped her, threw her phone out the window of the car, hit her with a baseball bat and left her near a reservoir.
When police searched the area described, on County Road 800 South, court documents show they found Marcia's shoe. A corpse was inside the abandoned home. The person's clothes matched those of Marcia's work clothes. Police noticed significant trauma to her head.
In those same arresting documents, police said another witness told them Ceaser had called her earlier this year and asked if he would kill Marcia after he discovered she’d been talking to other men following their divorce in March.
The witness told police that Ceaser told her he had a homemade lead pipe he wanted her to use.
According to police, Marcia's two daughters reported their mom missing two weeks ago, saying they hadn’t heard from their mom or seen her, and she hadn’t shown up for work, which was not like her. They told police the last person to see their mom was her Ceaser, who picked her up from work.
When police questioned Ceaser, they said he told investigators he picked Marcia up from work, but they had a fight, so he let her out of the car when she asked.
According to police, Ceaser told them that’s the last time he had seen her.
Court records show the couple separated last November and Marcia filed for divorce, also filing for a protective order, saying her then-husband had once threatened to shoot her. In the protective order filing, Marcia said her husband had threatened to hurt her, stalked her and repeatedly harassed her.
She described the relationship as controlling, saying she’d been with her then-husband for 23 years, marrying him in 2008.
In filing for the protective order, Marcia described an alleged encounter after the couple separated, where she said her husband showed up at her work, pushed his way in through the door, carrying a gun.
Marcia told the court Ceaser threatened to shoot her and her clients if she didn’t come with him. He said she was able to get away by pretending to follow him, then opening the door, and shoving him out before calling 911.
This past March, four months after asking for that protective order, court records show Marcia asked for it to be dismissed.
A few weeks later, the couple's divorce was final.
Then, this past April, a police report shows Marcia called the Winchester Police Department to report that someone had shot up her car with a BB gun. In that same report, police said Marcia told them her ex-husband had repeatedly been texting her and trying to call her, but she had not responded.
According to that police report, Marcia showed an officer an active protective order against Ceaser.
According to court documents, Ceaser was charged with invasion of privacy and violating a protective order. That case was still pending when Marcia disappeared.
Muncie police call this an active investigation. An autopsy was performed on Marcia on Sept. 15.
Anyone with additional information on the case is asked to contact Muncie Police Department Detective Division at 765-747-4867.