Body of Missing Christoval Woman May Have Been Found in East Texas Woods

JASPER, TX — The mystery of a missing Christoval woman who was running from the law may have met a tragic end. The Jasper County Sheriff’s Office in east Texas announced Thursday its deputies had recovered a body that could be that of Anabel Bruton in a wooded area 100 yards east of FM 252 outside Kirbyville, Texas.

Bruton had been on the run since February of this year with a warrant for her re-arrest in San Angelo because she failed to appear in district court here. She was accused of arson by torching of her boyfriend’s Christoval home in late December 2019. She was released from jail on January 12 after posting a $35,000 bond.

The story began on December 29 at midnight when the Christoval Volunteer Fire Department was dispatched to a structure fire in the 19800 block of 8th Street in Christoval. Anabel Bruton, 29, told investigators at the scene that she was the only person in the mobile home when the fire broke out.

While the firefighters were mopping up the fire scene, a volunteer fireman discovered a SnapChap video purportedly of Bruton pouring gasoline inside the master bedroom of the trailer.

In the video, Bruton screamed, “You finally get to see the chaos you caused, I F--king hate you." 

The booking photo of Anabel Bruton and scene of the fire:
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Apparently the outburst on SnapChat was aimed at her boyfriend, Rodney Allen Blankenship, Jr., with whom she lived at that residence, along with their three children. The two were not married.

Blankenship told sheriff’s deputies that he and Bruton had a verbal domestic dispute at 7:30 p.m. earlier that evening. Blankenship said he left after the argument to visit a friend. Blankenship said he found out his trailer was on fire from a friend who notified him at around midnight.

The Kirbyville Banner, a newspaper in east Texas where the body was found, reported that Bruton’s parents said Child Protective Services had removed the children from the home after a report of abuse at school. The teachers at the school noticed bruises on Bruton during their investigation, the paper reported.

Amanda Gates, the reporter for the Kirbyville newspaper, reported that Bruton and Blankenship showed up in their town in late February to attend the funeral of a friend. February 26, Bruton’s father Vernon Bruton said, was the last time he spoke to his daughter, according to Gates’ report.

Bruton’s parents told Gates that Bruton left the house where she was staying and walked to a nearby gas station with her suitcase. Witnesses at the gas station told Gates that Blankenship arrived in a vehicle and picked up Bruton there just before noon on February 26. However, Bruton’s parents stated that Blankenship had called the gas station at around 1 p.m. to ask if Bruton had showed back up.

Blankenship later told Bruton’s father that he and his daughter had argued and she jumped out of his vehicle and ran into the woods, according to Gates. Bruton left her belongings, including her suitcase, purse, wallet and medication in Blankenship’s vehicle.

Several sightings of Bruton were reported later, but according to Gates’ reporting, the witness reports may not be credible. For example, a witness told Jasper County Sheriff’s deputies they spotted Bruton at 4:30 a.m. February 27, early the next morning after her father said he last saw her and when Blankenship said Bruton jumped out of his vehicle during an argument. As corroborating evidence, the witness presented a receipt from a store where the witness claimed to have made a purchase at around 4:30 a.m. near the purported sighting. But later, the date of the purchase on the receipt was determined to be the day prior to the witness’s claimed sighting; the sale was processed the day of the sighting.

The body was found off FM 252, a road that runs between Kirbyville and Jasper, Texas:

The only clues of Bruton’s existence since her disappearance on February 26 was the discovery of a sweater with a pack of cigarettes in its pocket. It was found about 20 yards into a wooded area off FM 252 days after Bruton’s disappearance on around March 6, presumably near the area the body was discovered April 16.

Back west in Tom Green County, Bruton was indicted February 7 and a post-indictment hearing was set for March 4. Bruton failed to appear in court that day. On March 24, District Judge Carmen Dusek ordered the bond revoked and for Bruton to be arrested and brought back to the Tom Green County Jail. She was facing Second Degree Felony charges for Arson with a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison and a $10,000 fine.

The Jasper County Sheriff’s Office stated that an autopsy was ordered. Also, the sheriff stated that, “there was no evidence located that would suggest foul play was involved.” Their next step is to make positive identification of the body to determine without a doubt that the body is that of Anabel Bruton. On March 3, Jasper County Sheriff Mitchel Newman told KJAS radio that he believed Bruton was on the run to avoid the arson charges against her.

Anabel Bruton's father has a GoFundMe page set up in early March. So far, the page has generated $2,780 in donations.