Person of interest in missing woman case jailed on parole charges
Antwan Kennedy hasn’t kept out of legal trouble even after being labeled a person of interest in the high- profile disappearance case of a Hallandale Beach woman, court records show.
Kennedy, 30, was arrested Thursday in a Broward County courtroom for allegedly violating his parole conditions related to a criminal case in Pennsylvania. The alleged violations include lying to police about a car crash and driving past a probation officer while his license was suspended, records show.
He remains at the Broward County Jail without bond while police continue their quest to find out what happened to missingwoman Lynda Meier.
Hallandale Beach police have long considered Kennedy and Dallas King, 31, as being linked to Meier’s 2010 disappearance. King is currently serving several life sentences for a September 2007 armed robbery.
With Kennedy and King behind bars, Hallandale Beach investigators say they hope someone now will come forward with information that helps solve the missing- person case.
“Now that ( Kennedy) is in custody perhaps for a long time, and with Dallas King in custody for the remainder of his life, maybe those that have information would come forward without the fear of retaliation,” Police Chief Dwayne Flournoy said.
Neither Kennedy nor King has been charged in Meier’s disappearance.
On Thursday, Kennedy was supposed to make a routine appearance in a Broward misdemeanor courtroom on allegations he filed a false crash report with the Miramar
Police Department in 2011.
In that case, Kennedy allegedly called police to report a hit- and- run accident in the parking lot of a Miramar apartment complex. According to the arrest report, Kennedy told police he saw a 1999 white Nissan slam into his sister’s parked Pontiac G6 and then sped off.
Police didn’t believe him, noting the extensive damage to the car and no visible signs that a collision took place in the parking lot, according to the report. For example, the car was missing a headlight, but there was no headlight to be found, according to the report. Kennedy later allegedly confessed to giving police a false report.
While Kennedy awaits a court date in Broward, parole officials in Union County, Pa., also want Kennedy in their custody.
Kennedy, a former football player at Bucknell University in Pennsylvania, was placed on parole in 2007 after he was convicted of injuring three university students with a pellet gun. He was convicted of aggravated assault with a deadlyweapon without the intent to kill, according to court records.
On Aug. 9, parole officials in Pennsylvania and Florida compiled a list of violations allegedly committed throughout this
Police say that Meier talked by phone with Kennedy, a longtime friend, before she withdrew money from a bank ATM, drove her red 2007 Cadillac Escalade west on East Hallandale Beach Boulevard and vanished.
year and ordered awarrant for Kennedy’s arrest.
Among the alleged violations include an April incident in which a probation officer spotted Kennedy driving away from the parole/ probation office in Hollywood after being told he couldn’t drive because of a suspended driver’s license.
Other alleged violations include Kennedy lying about his home address, falsifying monthly employment reports, leaving Broward County without permission and failing to pay Florida a $ 50 monthly fine to cover part of his parole supervision.
Court records show he will remain in custody without bond in Broward until his false report case is resolved. Regardless of the outcome, he is expected to be extradited to Pennsylvania to answer to allegations of parole violations. It was not immediately clear how long Kennedy was to remain in parole and probation, said Scott Lizardi, chief probation officer with the Union County Adult Probation/ Parole office.
Kennedy’s arrest comes aftermore than three years of extensive searches for Meier, 40, who was last seen in the pre- dawn hours of June 4, 2010.
Police say that Meier talked by phone with Kennedy, a longtime friend, before she withdrew money from a bank ATM, drove her red 2007 Cadillac Escalade west on East Hallandale Beach Boulevard, and vanished.
After more than three years, police said they don’t expect to find her alive.
Hallandale Beach police ask anyone with information about Meier’s disappearance to call 954- 457- 1400, or Broward Crime Stoppers, anonymously, at 954- 493- 8477.