In the quiet community of Somerset, Kentucky, a beloved 70-year-old female, Ruthie Carolyn New, was found dead on Thursday, August 24, 2017, inside the Denham Street Baptist Church, an institution she held dear. Her death was quickly ruled a homicide, sending shockwaves through the tight-knit congregation and the wider community. New was the widow of the church's founding pastor, J.S.
New, and remained a devoted charter member, even taking on the role of custodian to care for the building her husband had helped establish.
The circumstances of her death were unsettling. Family members grew concerned when they couldn't reach her and reported her missing. The church's current pastor, Jeff Griffith, conducted a search of the facilities and made the grim discovery of her body in a storage room off the activity center. An autopsy later confirmed that she had been murdered, though the specific cause of death was not immediately released by authorities. It was also discovered that her Toyota Corolla was missing.
The investigation into her death soon focused on a person of interest, Dwight Mitchell Bell, a 41-year-old man with a violent criminal history. Authorities released surveillance images of Bell and a warrant was issued for his arrest in connection with the theft of New's car. The vehicle was later located in Indianapolis. The search for Bell concluded on September 12, 2017, when he was taken into custody in Dandridge, Tennessee.
Following his arrest, Bell confessed to the robbery and murder of Ruthie Carolyn New. He revealed that he had approached her at the church asking for food. In her kindness, she had given him some potato chips. Tragically, this act of compassion was met with violence. Bell attacked her, inflicting a fatal laceration to her neck before stealing her car and other belongings. In November 2017, Dwight Bell pleaded guilty to murder and robbery. Prosecutors recommended a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. His criminal past included a 1999 conviction for second-degree manslaughter in the shooting death of his own father.
