Authorities identify murder victim; two facing charges in slaying

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July 28, 2010

By Greg Grisolano Globe Staff Writer The Joplin Globe Wed Jul 28, 2010, 10:48 PM CDT

PITTSBURG, Kan. — Authorities have identified 29-year-old Ian P. Monaghan, of Pittsburg, as the victim of a murder that took place Sunday in a field outside a trailer park in rural Pittsburg.

Crawford County Sheriff Sandy Horton identified Monaghan after an autopsy and notification of the victim’s next of kin on Wednesday afternoon.

The sheriff declined to release any details about the cause of death.

“This is still an ongoing investigation,” he said. “It’s not appropriate to comment on that information at this time.”

The sheriff also identified a woman and a man who have been charged with first-degree murder in Monaghan’s death.

The defendants are Amie Lee Ryburn, 30, and Charles F. Mitchell, 38, both of Pittsburg.

Ryburn and Mitchell were arrested Monday night outside of Joplin, Mo., by a Jasper County sheriff’s deputy. Horton said the two were arrested on drug charges and were taken to Jasper County Jail in Carthage.

A third defendant, Robert L. “Dutch” Liming, 55, has been charged with obstruction of justice related to the case, Horton said.

Liming lives at the Oak Hill Trailer Park in rural Pittsburg, near the field where Monaghan’s body was discovered, the sheriff said.

“There were a group of individuals at that home, including our victim at some point,” Horton said. “Our victim along with the suspects were in a field south of the home where we believe the murder occurred.”

Deputies were called about 7:30 p.m. Monday to the area of the trailer park at 943 S. 190th St., about two miles west of Pittsburg. The deputies found the body of a man in a farm field, Horton said.

Horton said a “fast-moving” investigation led to the serving of a search warrant about noon Tuesday at a home in the trailer park.

The sheriff said a methamphetamine lab was discovered in the home on Lot D-5, and investigators had to suspend their work while a team from the Kansas Bureau of Investigation’s local drug task force examined the lab for evidence and removed any hazards it might pose.

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Authorities identify murder victim; two facing charges in slaying

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