Testimony: accused murderer made admissions to friends
LAWRENCEVILLE — After the gunshot that killed Angela Rabotte, investigators believe Charles Thomas Outlaw told friends that things “accidentally happened” and “I think I killed Angie.”
#According to testimony in court Friday, Outlaw also asked how to get powder from a gun off his hand and was allegedly concerned whether cell phone usage could be traced back to the wooded spot where the 26-year-old mother’s body was found.
#Magistrate Judge Laura Tate found probable cause for the case against Outlaw, 29, of Winder, to proceed to superior court after hearing those and other statements from Lilburn police Investigator Bert Ross. Bond wasn’t requested for the suspect, who has been in the Gwinnett County jail on unrelated drug charges since April 1.
#Loved ones of the victim cringed and sighed as Ross, the only witness called, gave vivid details of the state’s case. Some of the evidence, however, might not come as a complete surprise to Rabotte’s family, who are devastated that a friend she trusted could be capable of taking her life. The victim’s mother, Judy Rabotte, suspected Outlaw had something to hide from the beginning.
#“I had a very long conversation with him when she went missing,” the mother, who wasn’t able to attend the hearing, said in a phone interview from her home in Las Vegas on Friday afternoon. “The story kept changing. I never believed it from the get-go, because he couldn’t get the story straight.”
#Ross’ testimony revealed that Outlaw is believed to have shot Rabotte during an argument while he was giving her a ride home early on the morning of March 29, before dumping her body near Lilburn Industrial Boulevard. The detective said Rabotte, an adult dancer, had been working a bachelor party earlier that night in Atlanta.
#Though her mother disputes it, Ross said police believe the victim and suspect were romantically involved.
#It isn’t clear to police what the argument was about. One theory is that Rabotte had been becoming more popular as a dancer and Outlaw was trying to convince her to let him be her manager.
#The investigation revealed that Outlaw told a friend Rabotte pulled out a gun when they were driving through the Norcross area. Ross said Outlaw is believed to have taken the gun, placed it to Rabotte’s head and pulled the trigger. The next day, a witness allegedly saw Outlaw washing the car. Police also found gunshot residue on the interior roof of the car, the detective said.
#Outlaw’s version of that morning is different.
#According to Ross, Outlaw admitted to police that there had been in argument in the car, but he denied knowing anything about her disappearance.
#The suspect told police he stopped at an apartment complex in Norcross and left Rabotte in the car while he went into an apartment to get marijuana. Outlaw allegedly claimed he returned to the car about 15 minutes later and she was gone, along with all of her belongings.
#That doesn’t explain why one of the items Rabotte had with her, a portable device she used for counting cash, was found in the attic of one of Outlaw’s relatives, according to the detective.
http://www.gwinnettdailypost.com/news/2014/jul/25/testimony-accused-murderer-made-admissions-to/