Wife may have killed Green Beret husband because he was ending marriage; 'Horrific case,' DA says

FAYETTEVILLE, N.C. (WTVD) -- The disappearance of former North Carolina Green Beret, Clinton "Clint" Bonnell is now a murder investigation.

Authorities identified the body with no limbs found in a Cumberland County pond in February as Bonnell's. According to Cumberland County Sheriff's Office, his wife Shana Cloud was arrested and charged with first-degree murder and concealment of a death.

New gruesome details were revealed from court documents during her first court appearance Monday.

"It is a horrific case and just a terrible condition that the body was found in. It was just a torso. It did not have legs or arms or a head when it was found," Billy West, Cumberland County DA said.

Investigators say they have video evidence of Cloud in the area where Bonnell's torso was recovered.

The DA's office also revealed that Bonnell's girlfriend is the person who made the second call for a welfare check on Bonnell at his house on Jan. 28. The first call came from Methodist University after he didn't show up for class.

According to details from Cloud's hearing Monday, Bonnell went to a lawyer's office on Jan. 27 to seek a divorce. He had allegedly told his girlfriend he was preparing to end his marriage and that he had also told his wife.

This was the last time he was seen alive.

Investigators say they believe Cloud shot and killed her husband the next day inside the couple's house.

'I want you to know that Mrs. Cloud is innocent and looks forward to her day in court," Cloud's attorney, James Macrae Jr., said after her first appearance.

Also revealed in court Monday, Cloud was a traveling nurse and has worked for the Virginia Department of Corrections.

Cloud is being held without bond and does face capital punishment in this case.

From Missing to Murdered: Timeline

Based on information from the Cumberland County Sheriff's Office, here's a limited timeline of how the case unfolded and led to the arrest of Bonnell's wife, Shana Cloud.

Deputies say a phone call for a welfare check is what started the investigation into a missing person's case that soon turned into a murder investigation.

Bonnell, 50, was reportedly last seen in the Gray's Creek area of Cumberland County on Jan. 27. He was a student at Methodist University and enrolled in the Physician Assistant Program. When he failed to show up for morning class on Jan. 28, an employee from the university called the sheriff's office and requested a well-being check at his Fayetteville home.

Despite her husband's car, book bag, and other belongings being at the house, deputies said Cloud told them she hadn't seen him since the day before.

The sheriff's office said later the same day, they received another call requesting a welfare check on Bonnell.

That's when he was officially reported missing, and the case was assigned to the department's Major Crimes Unit.

Two days later, on Jan. 30, the case was reassigned to the Homicide Unit. The sheriff's office didn't specify why they reassigned it.

On Feb. 1, new information led detectives to expand the investigation into Virginia, where Cloud owned property. While in Virginia, they executed search warrants on Cloud's vehicle, rental property, and cell phone. The Virginia State Police assisted in the execution of the warrant and evidence collecting.

Evidence related to the investigation was brought back to Cumberland County. There, multiple search warrants were obtained and executed to extract information from Cloud's devices, which included digital data, cell phone records, video footage, digital devices and more.

The data collected used to develop a timeline of events not only surrounding Bonnell's disappearance but his whereabouts before his disappearance.

On Monday, Feb. 10, ABC11 Eyewitness News talked to Bonnell's sister who said his disappearance was very much out of character for him, especially since he had exams coming up and he was preparing and studying for them.

"I know what he was doing the day that he disappeared and he was making plans for his life, and studying for exams the next day," she said. "I mean, all signs point to him vanishing not on his own accord."

911 Call: 'Body with no Limbs' in a Pond

On Feb. 25, the sheriff's office received a call about human remains in a body of water in the 4200 block of Gainey Road. Because of the condition of the remains, an immediate identification was not possible.

DNA from the remains was sent to the North Carolina State Crime Lab. That DNA profile was then sent to the Armed Forces Medical Examiner System (AFMES) to be compared with the DNA on file for the former Green Beret.

On Friday, Mar. 28, the AFMES confirmed that the DNA collected was that of Bonnell. Cloud was then arrested and charged with murder.

Methodist University issued a statement after learning the news: "We are thankful to our MU community, on-campus police, and the partnership with local law enforcement who are working with the individual's family. Our thoughts are with them during this difficult time."

Download the ABC11 App to get breaking news, weather updates

Anyone with further information about this investigation is urged to call Sgt. J. Mcleod at (910) 677-5548 or CrimeStoppers at (910)483-TIPS (8477). You do not have to reveal your identity.