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Oxford EAGLE
Sunday, February 27, 2005
Ex-fiancé held in connection with dismemberment
murder
By Loretta Winston
STAFF WRITER
As the Yoknapatawpha County Sheriff's Department continues its
investigation into the murder and dismemberment of former Oxford
resident, Denise Hartigan, 25-year-old Grant Sexton was arrested
late Wednesday on charges related to the murder of his former
fiancé.
Sheriff's Public Information Officer Elizabeth Jones would not
comment on what led to Sexton's arrest, but did confirm that the Oxonian
is being held on kidnapping, false imprisonment and attempted murder
charges. Jones said Sexton has not been charged with the murder of
Denise Hartigan, but emphasized that the investigation is ongoing and
additional charges may be filed.
Sexton and Hartigan became engaged in 1997, but Hartigan abruptly
left Oxford in early 1998, canceling the wedding the couple had panned
for later that year. Sexton's roommate, Len Shannon, said, "Grant is
still totally in love with Denise, even after all these years. He would
never deliberately do anything to hurt her and there's no way he would
kill her. No way." Calls to Sexton's parents' home in Oxford were not
returned.
In December 2004, Hartigan made her first trip back to Oxford since
her departure seven years ago. It's still unclear where she went and who
she talked with upon her return, but it is known that her body parts
started turning up in surrounding counties within days of her arrival,
culminating in the discovery of her severed head in Taylor on January
15, 2005. With some portions of Hartigan's remains still missing, the
cause of her death has not been determined.
Last week, Hartigan's parents announced they would no longer
cooperate with the Sheriff's Department's investigation into their daughter's murder,
saying the Department had been "disrespectful" of them and their
friends and neighbors in their inquiries. The Hartigans said detectives
have been "digging up vicious rumors and hearsay regarding our
daughters' and our own personal life" instead of conducting "a serious
investigation into the death of our daughter." Jones declined to say
whether the parents' comments had any impact on the decision to arrest
Sexton.
The Hartigans' younger daughter, Rita, disappeared from Oxford in
1997. Her current whereabouts are unknown.
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