Thursday, March 19, 2020

The Disappearance and Presumed Murder of April Pease

 30 year-old April Pease
April Pease was last seen on March 17th, 2009. The 30 year-old had recently moved to Bloomington, Minnesota to receive treatment for her drug addiction and to get away from her abusive boyfriend, Cedric Marks (pictured below). According to her mother, April had finally gotten clean and seemed to be making progress in her treatment. 

Cedric Marks

Moving away from Cedric seemed to have a positive impact on April as well. Unfortunately, though, April could not completely eliminate Cedric from her life. The two had a young child together and they were in a very bitter custody dispute prior to her disappearance. They had a court appearance relating to custody scheduled for March 20th, 2009–but April never showed up. Cedric announced in court that he felt that April had relapsed. As a result, he got full custody of their son and was not considered a person of interest in April’s disappearance. 

Nearly 10 years passed without any trace of April, or any clues pertaining to her case. During this time, Cedric got married, but also dated numerous other women while married. One particular girlfriend was 28 year-old Jenna Scott. Cedric was allegedly abusive towards Jenna, and she ended up getting a restraining order against him during July 2018. In early January 2019, Jenna and her friend Michael Swearingin vanished after being seen together in Michael’s car near his Temple, Texas home. Cedric was immediately looked into as a person of interest, but police eventually ended up arresting him on an unrelated charge–for burglarizing Jenna’s home back in August 2018. Then, just a few days later, Jenna and Michael’s bodies were found in a rural area of Oklahoma. Cedric has been charged for their murders, and his girlfriend and wife have also been arrested for aiding him in his crimes. A more detailed write-up on the case of Jenna and Michael can be found here.

Unfortunately, April Pease still remains missing today. However, the deaths of both Jenna and Michael have prompted authorities in Minnesota to re-investigate her case and take a second look at Cedric. This investigation is currently ongoing. If you have any information on April’s whereabouts, please contact the Bloomington Police Department at 952-888-4401.

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UPDATE (March 2020): Cedric Marks and a woman named Kellee Kristine Sorensen have been arrested and charged with the second-degree murder of April Pease. The woman reportedly told authorities that back in March 2009, she and Cedric tracked April down at a women's shelter in Bloomington. The two then took April to an area on Interstate 35, where Cedric reportedly murdered her. According to Sorensen, she stayed in the car while Cedric committed the murder.

April's body has still not been found. Cedric reportedly told Sorensen that he removed April's hands and teeth so she would "never be identified." Cedric's wife, Maya Maxwell, stated that Cedric told her he buried April in one of the Dakotas.

Cedric and Sorensen remain behind bars as their cases are pending.

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