ANADARKO, OK -- There are new details on the murder of an Oklahoma pastor - a story that's making national headlines. In happened in Anadarko where the entire community is on alert. Sunday, 61-year-old, Carol Daniels of Oklahoma City was found inside the Christ Holy Sanctified Church.
Authorities say this is one of the worst crime scenes they've ever seen.
The flashing lights and crime tape outside the small town church are nothing compared to the dark and gruesome scene inside. Just before noon Sunday police found the body of the Carol Daniels in the sanctuary - a discovery so bizarre state and county officials are having a hard time piecing it together.
"This is one of the worst crime scenes I've ever seen. The facts of the case are just horrific," Caddo County District Attorney Bret Burns said. "It is a brutal crime scene that really shocked me. It shocked the law enforcement involved."
Getting lawmen to talk about what they saw is very difficult right now, but we know Daniels was found behind an altar in the church - with multiple wounds all over her body. Whether this murder was ritualistic in nature has not been confirmed. Tuesday afternoon the medical examiner's office released limited details of Daniel's autopsy.
"The cause of death in this case is multiple sharp force injuries and manner of death is homicide," Cherokee Ballard of the Oklahoma State Medical Examiner's said.
Sunday investigators worked late into the night gathering possible leads. We're told doors to the church were locked and there were no signs of forcible entry.
"The very fact that you have a preacher killed in her church in the middle of the day on a Sunday is alarming," Burns said.
Burns said this would definitely be a death penalty case. County officials will be meeting with other pastors in Anadarko Wednesday to discuss how to handle this situation. The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation is offering up to a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for Daniel's murder.
Authorities say this is one of the worst crime scenes they've ever seen.
The flashing lights and crime tape outside the small town church are nothing compared to the dark and gruesome scene inside. Just before noon Sunday police found the body of the Carol Daniels in the sanctuary - a discovery so bizarre state and county officials are having a hard time piecing it together.
"This is one of the worst crime scenes I've ever seen. The facts of the case are just horrific," Caddo County District Attorney Bret Burns said. "It is a brutal crime scene that really shocked me. It shocked the law enforcement involved."
Getting lawmen to talk about what they saw is very difficult right now, but we know Daniels was found behind an altar in the church - with multiple wounds all over her body. Whether this murder was ritualistic in nature has not been confirmed. Tuesday afternoon the medical examiner's office released limited details of Daniel's autopsy.
"The cause of death in this case is multiple sharp force injuries and manner of death is homicide," Cherokee Ballard of the Oklahoma State Medical Examiner's said.
Sunday investigators worked late into the night gathering possible leads. We're told doors to the church were locked and there were no signs of forcible entry.
"The very fact that you have a preacher killed in her church in the middle of the day on a Sunday is alarming," Burns said.
Burns said this would definitely be a death penalty case. County officials will be meeting with other pastors in Anadarko Wednesday to discuss how to handle this situation. The Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation is offering up to a $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the person responsible for Daniel's murder.
