Armorys Purposes
A homeless shelter in the winter, the Armory, a National Guard training facility, is managed the year around by 3 fulltime Guardsmen.
From the widely scattered, potentially volatile, pieces of evidence police found around the capacious gymnasium, including pepper spray, a ball bat and an orange substance that had been sprayed around the gymnasium, police today were stitching together the final act.
Day That Makes a U-Turn
To say the least, the suspect, at first glance, appeared to be suspicious.
When found, he was described as blood covered, packing several knives.
According to police, he later admitted, I whacked her a couple times.
This was a closing scene in a supposed Friday afternoon shopping trip that went awry.
During a search of the gymnasium area, bloodied objects abounded.
What a Search Turns up
A large amount of blood-stained towels had been stuffed into a clear plastic trash bag.
Blood was smudged on walls. Scattered fragments of hairs or fibres were strewn about.
Far more interesting than two pieces of broken, orange-painted fingernails at one end of the gym and blood droplets splattered in different sections of the gymnasium floor was a blue aluminum baseball bat lying in silent testimony in a corner office. The bat had a large amount of blood on the striking end, police said, and it was among more blood on the floor.
Suspect from Carson
Thirty-four-year-old Scott Allen Ansman, of Carson, who is married, has been charged with the murder of the 29-year-old woman. Her name was not released, pending notification of next of kin.
Far from trying to escape, the suspect, blood and all, was mopping the floor of the Armory when three police officers responded to a 4:30 radio call from him of a knifing.
Trousers, tee-shirt, at least one boot and both hands had turned to vivid scarlet with blood.
Color Guard
Dressed, originally, in the khaki colors of a soldier, the suspect was having trouble focusing.
Kept blinking.
He said his eyes became irritated when he was sprayed in the face, straight-on, with oleoresin capsicum, popularly known as pepper spray. Mr. Ansman was allowed to thoroughly rinse his face.
After they were let in through the gym doors, the first question police posed to the mopper was the location of the body.
Too Busy?
Mr. Ansman pointed toward the southeast corner of the sporting area where a body was lying face down, beneath an embroidered red blanket. Only the victims legs were visible.
The mopper did not seem disposed toward accompanying the police to the body. Said he had to get the floor cleaned up. He continued swabbing the mop until being ordered, firmly, to stop.
Mr. Ansman may have been referring to two wet areas. Both had streak marks and swirls, consistent with patches that had been freshly swabbed with a wet mop.
The End
Shortly after 5 members of the Fire Dept. arrived, the victim, fully clothed, was pronounced dead at 4:36.
Besides an open laceration on the left side of her head, a diluted bloody solution was pooling around her.
Opening a window to what may have happened at a point, police said her black hair seemed disproportionately saturated and wet for the amount of blood near her head.
She Makes a Demand?
Mr. Ansman told police that the trouble started in mid-afternoon. When he and the woman, whom he had known and dated for some time, were in the Armory alone, he walked into an office where the weapons safe is maintained. As he walked out of the office, he said the woman became irate. She began demanding money from him.
He did not know what she was talking about, Mr. Ansman said. When he said no, she aimed pepper spray at his outraged face.
Fighting Begins
The woman, who has been characterized as a possible transient, picked up a knife and tried to stab him several times, the Guardsman said. He countered with a baseball bat. I whacked her a couple times.
This was going to be a happy day for the two of them, whether because or perhaps in spite of the fact she had announced she was expecting a bundle from heaven.
She said I knocked her up, Mr. Ansman told police.
Ominous Sundown
After going out with each other for some time, the couple had agreed that last Friday would be an opportune time to start shopping for a car for her.
Well before sunset, however, the sun had set on the victims life.
The Closing Act
Ten minutes after she had crumpled for the final time, Mr. Ansman dialed the police.
That much time elapsed, he said later, because he needed to clean up the gymnasium.
He feared he was going to be in trouble. The place was such a mess.
