In a press conference on Monday, Seattle Police Chief Kathleen O’Toole said that remains found in a recycling bin in a south Seattle residential neighborhood on Saturday are assumed to belong to Lyne.
Although police say that all evidence points to the remains being those of the missing victim, confirmation from the medical examiner is still pending.
Authorities have arrested John Robert Charleton – who was staying at a residence in Snohomish County, Washington – in connection with Lyne’s murder. He is currently being held in the King County Jail.
During the press conference, it was revealed that Charleton does have a criminal history, which includes crimes of violence, although officers would not specify further.
While officers would not discuss the details of the body parts, the Seattle Times reported over the weekend that an unidentified homeowner found three body parts packaged in plastic bags in his recycling bin around 4 p.m. Saturday and alerted police. Officers later confirmed that they were human remains.
Police reportedly believed the bags were placed in the bin late Friday or early Saturday, but they did not think the crime was committed in the area.
Lyne, who lives in Renton, but works as a nurse at the Swedish Medical Center in Seattle, was reported missing on Saturday by her ex-husband, CBS reports. Friends and neighbors had reportedly been unable to contact her date, who she had met online and whose identity has not yet been released. Police did not say if the suspect in custody is the same person Lyne was meeting.
Over the weekend, Lyne’s neighbor Edward Franceschina voiced concerns that something bad had happened to the woman, telling KCPQ – KTLA’s local sister station – that the last time he saw her was before her date, when she went out to check her mail before attending the Seattle Mariner’s opening.
“I don’t know; it’s not good,” Franceschina told the station. “The purse, the telephone and everything was in the house. The longer it goes on, the more you think she’s not coming back.”
According to local CBS affiliate, KIRO-7, neighbors said that Seattle police had been at Lyne’s house since Saturday evening and spent several hours investigating there. The 40-year-old’s car – a 2015 silver, Toyota Highlander with Washington plate AUW3230 – is also missing.
During the press conference, O’Toole asked that anyone who may have seen the vehicle contact police.
Although both, the remains and Lyne’s disappearance, were reported within hours of each other, it wasn’t until Monday that police officially linked the two.
Seattle police are asking anyone who may have seen anything to contact them immediately.
