Couple Accused Of Homicide Submerged Dead Bodies In Chemical Baths: Report

Authorities accused a Montana couple of stabbing two people to death and trying to destroy the bodies with chemical solutions last Thursday. They face deliberate homicide charges after police searched their Missoula home and found "the remains of two people in the basement," according to reports.

Tiffanie Pierce, 23, and Augustus Standingrock, 26, have been in police custody since being booked Friday. The couple didn’t enter pleas and authorities set their bail at $2 million each. They appeared in Justice Court Monday.

"There’s no combination of (release conditions) that would ensure that members of our community would be safe," Missoula County Attorney Kirsten Pabst told Justice of the Peace Marie Andersen during the hearing.

Pierce’s roommate talked to police last Thursday, stating he was woken up by screams. He said he witnessed Pierce and her boyfriend Standingrock taking showers to wash the blood from their bodies, the Missoulian reported Monday.

The suspects tried to destroy the bodies by submerging them in a tub full of chemicals, according to prosecutors. The initial investigation indicated that the victims died from stab wounds.

Pierce allegedly informed her roommate that Standingrock came home with two people, attacked one, and that she attacked the other when they tried to escape. Pierce told the roommate that they had stored the bodies in the basement, CBS-affiliate KRTV reported Monday.

The roommate reportedly exited the house after Pierce confessed. After the roommate reported the incident, police acquired a search warrant for the couple’s home on Strand Avenue in Missoula.

Police inspected the home that afternoon and uncovered human remains in the basement. Pierce and Standingrock were in the home at the time. Standingrock had a bloody cloth draped around his hand and had been holding a gun before he complied. Police arrested the couple without incident.

During the search, authorities discovered an axe and knives covered in blood and human remains.

Investigators haven’t identified the victims, though court documents revealed them to be a man and a woman. They also concluded that Pierce had recently bought the cleaning solution, plastic tubs and chemicals used to submerge the victims.

Authorities also charged Pierce and Standingrock with accountability for deliberate homicide.

Police had already been investigating Pierce for her alleged ties to a home invasion and stabbing that occurred July in Montana.

When police searched the home, Standingrock was on conditional release for felony sentences for assault with a weapon and criminal endangerment.