Dennis Lane, courtesy of Henry County Police
Law enforcement authorities in Georgia have accused a man of murdering a 23-year-old woman and then using his cell phone to record the aftermath of the killing, which allegedly included a clip of him defiling the victim’s corpse, local news outlets reported.
According to the reports, prosecutors are claiming that 41-year-old Dennis Lane killed Mirsha Victor in his apartment on Hudson Bridge Road in Dekalb County on the night of July 8. He is charged with murder, false imprisonment, tampering with evidence, and necrophilia, per the Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
The Journal-Constitution reported that Lane, after allegedly killing Victor, took the victim’s cell phone and called Victor’s mother on July 9 to request that she meet him at his apartment. Victor’s mother agreed to the meeting, also calling the Henry County Police and bringing several officers with her to Lane’s apartment.
Police took Lane into custody and also noticed that across the street from his apartment there was a dumpster that contained what appeared to be a bloody mattress. Inside of Lane’s apartment, investigators discovered “blood on the floor, in the bathroom, and a mattress missing,” an officer reportedly wrote.
The Journal-Constitution additionally reported that investigators came across a July 8 video filmed on Lane’s cell phone that led to the necrophilia charge. Two other people were also charged with helping Lane get rid of Victor’s body, which was discovered in close proximity to another set of remains that belonged to a female who authorities have not yet identified.
“After killing and raping the victim, the accused disposed of the body and physical evidence with aid from Cleounsee Fisher and Ronisha Preckwinkle,” an officer said in the warrant, according to the Journal-Constitution. “Other physical evidence of this murder and other possible murders have also been discovered in the residence.”
Georgia law defines necrophilia as follows:
(a) A person commits the offense of necrophilia when he performs any sexual act with a dead human body involving the sex organs of the one and the mouth, anus, penis, or vagina of the other.(b) A person convicted of the offense of necrophilia shall be punished by imprisonment for not less than one nor more than ten years.
The victim’s remains were discovered in the woods across the street from Lane’s home on July 19 and confirmed as belonging to Victor on July 22 by the Henry County Coroner’s Office, per a report local news outlet 11 Alive News.
Victor’s mother confirmed to WSB-TV that her daughter and Lane worked together at a food processing plant, but emphasized that the two were “just friends.”
“She was a very loving girl, fun, outgoing. Always complimented people, you know, anyone she met with,” Elien told the news station. “She was friendly. Not scared of adventure, of meeting new people.”
WSB-TV also discovered that Lane has had serious trouble with the law in years past.
According to the report, Lane was convicted of raping a 10-year-old girl in Illinois, a crime for which he served approximately 17 years in prison before moving to Georgia. He was entered into the sex offender database but was not required to inform his neighbors about his crimes.
“Every day I would see this guy literally standing on his porch. For a long time, I thought he had children because he would watch the bus and watch the kids get off the bus,” a neighbor identified only as Darlene told the outlet.
A GoFundMe campaign was started to help pay for Mirsha’s memorial and to support her surviving parents and three siblings.
“On July 8, 2021 Mirsha E Victor, my beautiful niece of 23 years old was kidnapped and brutally murdered,” Guerda Victor wrote. “As you can image this is not the kind of thing a family prepares for. This horrific incident has shaken our family to its core and the traumatic impact of this horror will be felt for years to come.”
“We would love to give this beautiful soul the proper memorial she deserves and set up support for her immediate family as they move through this indescribable tragic and traumatic circumstance,” the grieving relative said.
[image via Henry County Police Department]