James Robert Rothenbusch, 52, also arrested Aug. 5, was indicted on gross abuse of a corpse, a fifth-degree felony; tampering with evidence, a third-degree felony; aggravated possession of methamphetamine, a fifth-degree felony; and two fourth-degree misdemeanors of illegal use or possession of drug paraphernalia and failure to report knowledge of a death.
A Butler County Grand Jury declined to indict Rothenbusch on a second-degree felony charge of corrupting another with drugs.
Both are in the Butler County Jail.
Rothenbusch’s bond has been set at $45,000, according to Butler County court records. Sheppard’s bond was set at $40,000.
Both men are being held in the Butler County Jail and will be back in court Oct. 16 for a plea or trial setting.
All charges stem from the death a pregnant woman, Brittany Fuhr-Storms, 28, who was left in a Middletown house for days before her body was found in Jackson Twp. on Aug. 3, according to the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office.
Jackson Twp. police, the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office and Middletown police released additional information about the investigation during a press conference in August.
The investigation began around 7:47 p.m. Aug. 3, when Jackson Twp. police responded to a report of a deceased woman found inside a plastic tote on Fort Anthony Road near Manning Road.
People walking along the road reported there was a cooler with a bad smell, said Jackson Twp. Police Chief Mark Bruner.
They located a large, plastic storage tote, removed the lid and found a deceased woman, later identified as Fuhr-Storms, wrapped in towels and a tarp, Bruner said.
An autopsy determined Fuhr-Storms was pregnant, according to the sheriff’s office. Her unborn child did not survive.
The investigation led the sheriff’s office to Fuhr-Storms’ last known address in Franklin. Additional information learned there resulted in the sheriff’s office contacting Middletown police, and a joint investigation began.
It was determined Fuhr-Storms died under suspicious circumstances at a house in the 2000 block of Logan Avenue in Middletown, Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office Chief of Staff Jeremy Roy said.
The two men reportedly left her body in the shower for days before putting her in a plastic tote and leaving her in Jackson Twp.
On Aug. 6, Middletown police and the sheriff’s office served a search warrant at the Logan Avenue home, Rothenbusch’s residence.
Rothenbusch was detained at the scene and investigators collected narcotics and other drug paraphernalia, according to the sheriff’s office.
Investigators reportedly found items related to the death investigation, resulting in a second warrant.
During an interview, Rothenbusch admitted to drug trafficking and said Fuhr-Storms died at his home under suspicious circumstances, according to the sheriff’s office.
He allegedly kept her body in the home for around four days.
Rothenbusch was then arrested, and the second suspect, Sheppard, was found on Baltimore Street in Middletown.
Middletown Police Deputy Chief Ryan Morgan said Sheppard tried to flee, but was quickly apprehended.
Sheppard said Fuhr-Storms died from an alleged drug overdose and was in the house for approximately a week before her body was removed, Morgan said.
The Montgomery County Coroner’s Office has not determined Fuhr-Storms’ cause and manner of death.
Both men were reportedly aware Fuhr-Storms was pregnant.
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