Dana Point Times, Vol. 1, Issue 39, October 31-November 6, 2008
By Nathan Wright
A Dana Point man was charged with murder on October 30 after AC Tow in San Clemente found a dead woman inside an unplugged freezer inside his RV. Clarence Butterfield was already in jail in Las Vegas on separate charges when the unidentified woman was found. Authorities believe the body might be Rebekah Butterfield, the 22-year-old daughter of Clarence Butterfield. Her mother reported her missing earlier this year and told investigators she hadn’t seen her daughter in more than three years.
While Rebekah Butterfield was only reported missing in June, Orange County Sheriff’s Department spokesperson Jim Amormino said the body was so decomposed that investigators believe whomever it is might have died two years ago. Rebekah lived in Temecula and off and on with her father inside the RV, and investigators are still working to find friends and acquaintances who have information about her whereabouts in the past few years.
Butterfield was arrested in Dana Point on September 20 after a deputy pulled him over for a traffic citation and discovered he had an outstanding warrant in Las Vegas. On October 1 Butterfield’s RV was towed from a private street in Capistrano Beach to the AC Tow yard after a resident complained that it had been abandoned. There it sat until October 28 when employees noticed a bad smell and entered the RV to investigate. The body was discovered in the freezer, which had been sealed shut with duct tape.
Authorities are waiting on DNA test results to identify the body. Amormino asks anyone with information about Rebekah Butterfield to contact the Sheriff’s Homicide Department at 714.647.7044.