Richard Elwood Sanden in Ohio charged with necrophilia; insists he had no idea woman was dead: cops

Richard Elwood Sanden in Ohio charged with necrophilia; insists he had no idea woman was dead: cops

By Michael Sheridan
DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Thursday, January 13th 2011, 10:33 AM

Police in Ohio say Richard Elwood Sanden wasn't aware that the woman he was having sex with was dead.

An Ohio man charged with necrophilia swears he had no idea the woman was dead when they were having sex, police said.

Authorities arrested Richard Sanden earlier this week after finding that the 55-year-old had sexual relations with the corpse of Rebecca Whitehead, the Washington Times-Herald reports.

Sanden called the cops to alert them of the 48-year-old's death, according to police documents, and had performed CPR on her until emergency personnel arrived.

The Geneva, Ohio, man said he had met Whitehead through a telephone dateline and had been seeing her for nearly four months, police said. That night, before engaging in sexual intercourse, Sanden said he and the woman had been drinking and smoking marijuana.

When asked by detectives if he'd known that the woman had died during their sexual encounter, Sanden insisted he was unaware. During a search of the apartment, however, police discovered a video camera that the man had allegedly tried to hide, according to the Washington Times-Herald.

Initially charged with possession of marijuana and abuse of a corpse, after watching the video, authorities added charges of necrophilia. His bond was also raised from just $4,500 to $500,000.

Other videos were discovered in Sanden's home, police said, which showed him having sex with other women he'd met through the telephone dateline.

The cause of Whitehead's death has not yet been determined.

msheridan@nydailynews.com; or follow him at Twitter.com/NYDNSheridan

via nydailynews.com