The missing Port Barre teen who got off a school bus on the morning of Thursday, March 28, and then got into a car with a former family friend, 47-year-old Cory “Shane” Disotell, was found Friday, April 5, in Pagosa Springs, Colorado, and a tip from a local woman may have pointed authorities to her whereabouts.
An employee at the Walmart SuperCenter in Opelousas, who didn’t want to be identified, says days before Domeanna Spell got off the bus and got into a car with Disotell, she saw him purchasing pre-paid debit cards while she was at work.
” I used to go to church with him and he caught my attention because he was talking loud and exagerating a story with another customer, and that’s when I realized that I knew him. He purchased a new debit car and loaded money onto it, and then loaded some money onto an old debit card,” the employee said.
When news reports surfaced that Spell was missing and that she may be in the company of Disotell, the employee says, it dawned on her that he might be using those same pre-paid debit cards that she saw him purchase.
The store employee, who is a mother of four, said she knew she had to speak out and tell someone what she remembered because she said, “everything is traceable.”
But, before she did or said anything she went through the chain of command at work to make sure that her intended efforts coincided with Walmart’s employee policies.
” I desperately wanted to help, even if they didn’t think the tip would be useful, because all I could think about was, what if this were my kids… but I also didn’t wanna lose my job for going to the authorities about something that happened inside of the store.”
After getting the all clear, the employee said reached out to the Chief of Police in Port Barre ( Deon Boudreaux) to let him know what she remembered and she says he sent an officer over to speak with her to get additional information.
A short while later she said she was contacted by two FBI agents, who followed up on the tip.
KLFY contacted Chief Boudreaux who would neither confirm or deny the statement, but instead said that because the FBI has taken over the investigation, that he was referring all questions about the case to that agency.
On Friday, the FBI released the following statement on finding Spell:
“We are pleased to announce that Domeanna Spell of Port Barre, LA has been safely located. We would like to praise the hard work and dedication of the men and women representing the Port Barre Police Department, St. Landry Parish Sheriff’s Office, the Louisiana State Police, the U.S. Marshals Service, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the numerous local, state, and federal agencies across the United States who were committed to safely locating Miss Spell. Additionally the public and the media are to be commended for providing credible tips to the authorities and repeatedly reporting on Miss Spell’s story. The collaboration between law enforcement agencies was remarkable. The success of rescuing Miss Spell is a blessing.”
Eric J. Rommal, FBI New Orleans Special Agent in Charge
“My only regret is that I didn’t remember sooner,” the employee said. “It’s possible that if I had, police could have caught him before they ever left the area.”
As of 2 p.m. Friday, police confirmed that Disotell was taken into custody and that Spell is safe.
KLFY has not been able to confirm if Spell is back in Port Barre, Louisiana with her family.
