Courtesy of Rita Thomas
The boyfriend of Desheena Kyle, a Knoxville, Tennessee, woman who was found dead last month, has been indicted on murder charges, police announced Thursday.
A grand jury indicted John Bassett on charges of first-degree murder, abuse of a corpse, and tampering with evidence, according to a news release from the Knoxville Police Department. The Knoxville Medical Examiner's Office ruled Kyle's death a homicide, but has not yet determined a cause of death, according to the release.
Bassett's attorney, David Skidmore, did not immediately respond Thursday to Insider's request for comment.
Kyle's grandmother first reported her missing on June 28 after no one in her family had seen her for at least ten days. Police began investigating Kyle's disappearance as a potential homicide on September 23, and named Bassett a person of interest in her disappearance on the same day.
Police found Kyle's body on September 28, at a home reportedly owned by one of Bassett's relatives.
Knoxville Police Department
Bassett was arrested in July on probation violation charges and was subsequently hit with unrelated gun and drug charges while in custody, police have said.
Police records also show that in 2014, Bassett had been arrested and charged with domestic assault against Kyle, stemming from an incident in which he smashed her car window while she was inside. A judge later dismissed the charge.
Police said Thursday that Bassett is being held in jail on a $500,000 bond.