62-year-old Ray Tomlinson, his 93-year-old mother along with his 31-year-old girlfriend all got into a van in Arizona. They planned to drive across the country and stop in Michigan however, along the route, the girlfriend fell asleep in the passenger seat and never woke up.
A road trip involving three people ended with only two of them arriving at the destination alive. 62-year-old Ray Tomlinson, his elderly mother along with his 31-year-old girlfriend all got into a van in Arizona.
They planned to drive across the country and stop in Michigan. However, along the route, the girlfriend fell asleep in the passenger seat and never woke up. By the time the trio reached Texas or Oklahoma, Tomlinson realized the woman was dead.
"She just didn't respond so I kept driving. I am out in the middle of nowhere." [WPTV]
Even after he made that shocking discovery, Tomlinson continued driving for 26 hours and later told reporters he wasn’t sure what to do with the body and didn’t want to leave her somewhere as a ‘Jane Doe’. He said his mother urged him to go to Michigan so the body could be dropped off at the Macomb County Morgue.
Tomlinson feared his vehicle would be impounded if he stopped and told anyone what happened. The girlfriend checked out of a mental health facility right before the trip.
The police were notified of the body after staffers at the facility spoke to Tomlinson on the phone and learned she passed away.
According to law enforcement, her body shows no signs of foul play and investigators suspect an accidental overdose is to blame. No charges have yet been filed against Tomlinson.
