Suspect in triple slaying dies, leaving motive mystery

KISSEE MILLS, Mo. -- A 17-year-old suspected of killing a woman and two children and then setting their mobile home on fire died Monday, leaving investigators struggling to figure out what went wrong.

Joshua Allen Crawford apparently shot himself in the head just as he crashed a stolen car into gasoline pumps Saturday night, or immediately after, Taney County Sheriff Jim Russell said. A pistol was recovered from the vehicle, he said.

Crawford had been in critical condition at a Springfield hospital, so investigators were not able to interview him, Russell said.

"All the witnesses are deceased," the sheriff said Monday.

Investigators hoped autopsies would yield some clues in the deaths of Janet Marler, 31, Richard Husman III, 12, and 7-year-old Jacob Husman. All three suffered injuries that were inflicted before the fire was set, Russell said, but he declined to discuss details.

Marler lived at the mobile home in Kissee Mills with her boyfriend, Richard Husman II, and his two sons. Crawford -- the son of Husman's former girlfriend -- also lived there, Russell said.

The elder Husman told investigators there had been no feuds or other signs of trouble before the killings. In fact, the people involved had spent Saturday frolicking on Bull Shoals Lake, which is about a mile from the mobile home they had rented for about six months.

Husman told investigators he sent the others back to the mobile home while he finished packing up at the lake. He returned at 7:39 p.m. to find the mobile home on fire.

Bill Zieres, regional chief state fire marshal, said the fire appeared to have been intentionally set.

Then, at 8:52 p.m. Saturday, Russell said his department received an emergency call from the convenience store, about 15 miles west of Kissee Mills.

Crawford crashed into the pumps at a convenience store in rural Taney County.

The pumps were equipped with automatic shut-off valves, preventing any gas from spilling, authorities said.

Convenience store owner Naresh Saijwani said he caught the crash on the store's security camera. The driver hit the first pump head-on and then rammed into a second pump, he said.

"He was flying," said Saijwani, who estimated the car's speed at 70 mph.

The car that Crawford was driving was taken from the mobile home, Russell said.

It was unclear where Crawford got the gun, Russell said. It did not belong to Husman.

Bonnie Isaacs, who owned the mobile home, said she knew little about the tenants.

"All I knew is that he was a single father and paid his rent on time," she said.