More than two dozen newly released court documents reveal details in the death of Brittany Killgore, who officials say was an unwilling participant in a deadly sex game.
The 22 warrants obtained by NBC 7 San Diego detail the sadomasochistic lifestyle of the three people facing murder and torture charges in Killgore’s death. The documents were formerly sealed at the request of the San Diego County District Attorney.
The Fallbrook woman’s body was found at Borel Road and Arosa Street in Winchester, California near Lake Skinner four days after she was reported missing in April 2012.
Dorothy Grace Marie Maraglino, 36; Jessica Lynn Lopez, 25 and U.S. Marine Staff Sgt. Louis Perez, 45, have pleaded not guilty to murder charges in the killing of the 22-year-old Marine wife.
Last week an amended complaint was filed, adding new allegations to the murder charges, our media partners the North County Times reported.
The complaint also accuses the three suspects of conspiring to kidnap, torture and sexually assault Killgore.
When investigators searched a home on East Fallbrook Street, the residence of Maraglino and her roommate Lopez, they say they found a room in the home that was set up to be an apparent sex dungeon.
The warrants list items removed from Maraglino’s home include a plastic and wooden whips and crops, leather restraints, ball gag, leather collar, zip ties, various ropes and cords, swords, a machete, black spiked gloves and a black knife labeled “The Black Defender.”
They also removed several video cameras and computers found in the home’s basement, computer hard drives and personal journals. Detectives recorded a number of video tapes were found in the search including several VHS tapes inside a bag in the trunk of Perez’ vehicle. However the documents don’t reveal what, if anything, was recorded on those video tapes.
Killgore had injuries to her neck that “were consistent with her being strangled” and injuries and her wrist and leg that were “consistent with someone using a tool such as a saw [sic] an attempt at dismembering her,” the court documents state.
In a suicide note found at the time of Lopez’ arrest, the suspect had documented how she tried to dispose of Killgore’s body like Dexter, the serial killer character on a popular cable television show.
Detectives state in the documents that the defendants practiced a sadomasochistic lifestyle. Maraglino identified herself as a dominatrix and Perez admitted he liked to spank women officials said in the warrants.
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The defendants told investigators they were involved in sexual activities which included master, servant and slave role playing the documents state.
Homicide investigators, faced with the disappearance of Killgore on April 13, quickly requested access to mobile phone and cell tower records from various carriers as well as email passwords and titles of cable movies rented via on demand.
Click here for a timeline of events in the Brittany Killgore murder case
In four search warrants unsealed in July, investigators say they found evidence that an SUV owned by Perez had been used to dump Killgore's body in Lake Skinner.
Also, a shopping bag containing blue latex gloves and a stun baton was also found during the investigation according to the warrants. Both the bag and the gloves had a red substance on them that tested positive for blood the documents show.
In the warrants, investigators say that San Diego County Crime Lab technicians confirmed the blood to be "a match for the DNA profile of Brittany Killgore."
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