Dismemberment Case Unfolds
Wife and Half-Brother Charged After Man's Dismembered Body Found
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The wife and half brother of 38-year-old Dalewayne Turner have been charged with dismembering his body and hiding his death after his severed remains were found floating in Lake Mattoon, Illinois — more than 160 miles from their Plainfield home WMTV15 News. Robin Turner, 62, and James Adams, 26, were arrested last week. Prosecutors say Adams stabbed Dalewayne on June 21, then the pair spent days cutting up his body, pouring concrete, and driving downstate to dump the remains in the lake.
Recreational boaters spotted a severed human arm in Lake Mattoon on June 28 WLFI. Illinois State Police traced tattoos on the arm back to Dalewayne. A locked basement freezer at the Plainfield home still held his head, neck, and torso — wrapped in duct tape and weighed down with cinder blocks.
Brother's Confession Triggered the 911 Call
The case broke open on June 30 when Steven Turner — Dalewayne's brother and Adams' half brother — called 911 WECT. Steven told police he was at the home socializing with Robin and Adams when Adams paused the TV and said plainly: "I killed Dale. He is in the freezer." Steven later told investigators the moment made him sick to his stomach.
That same night, Illinois State Police pulled over the couple's red Dodge Ram pickup truck and detained both suspects KLTV. Adams spoke up on his own, saying: "The one thing I will say is that I did it, but I did it out of self-defense. I will tell you guys that." Police then executed a search warrant the next morning and found the remains in the basement freezer.
Google Searches and Concrete Bags Reveal Weeks of Planning
Court records show Robin Turner began searching suspicious terms on her phone as early as June 2 — nearly three weeks before the killing WFSB. Her searches included "does chloroform really knock you out," "can you die from an overdose of lithium," and "is it easy to crack your head from a fall." On June 19, she bought a chest freezer from a Best Buy in Plainfield. She later told police her old freezer had broken.
On June 23, surveillance cameras at a Menards store in Crest Hill, Illinois, caught both Robin and Adams buying roughly 20 bags of concrete WILX. License plate reader cameras tracked their truck south over the following days. By June 26, the truck was spotted in Mattoon — and the two gray plastic totes that had been in the bed were gone. Later that night, Adams stopped at a Walmart in Effingham and bought 5-pound sports weights and duct tape, then changed clothes in the restroom and threw his old ones in the trash. Investigators recovered them.
Family Kept in the Dark While Remains Sat in a Freezer
Dalewayne's cousin Chrystal Mann said the family had no idea he was dead KCBD. Robin reportedly told relatives that Dalewayne was "still in treatment" at a rehabilitation facility and that he wanted no contact. Mann said she saw the ISP's photo of the tattooed arm online but did not think it could be her cousin. "I thought, 'Oh, this is crazy. There is no way,'" she said. "And I was wrong."
Mann described Dalewayne as a devoted family man who "always wore a smile" and "tried to make everyone laugh." The case carries a painful backstory: Dalewayne and James shared a mother who was murdered over a decade ago by Adams' father KKTV. After that, Dalewayne and Robin took in a then-13-year-old James and raised him in their home.
Murder Charges Still Pending as Forensic Work Continues
So far, Robin Turner and Adams each face one count of concealing a homicidal death — a Class 3 felony — and one count of dismembering a human body, a Class X felony that carries 6 to 30 years in prison Fox Carolina. Neither has been charged with murder yet. Prosecutors say they are building that case while the medical examiner finishes a full autopsy of the remains.
Both defendants appeared in court on July 6 and were assigned public defenders Valley News Live. Prosecutors filed to keep them jailed, arguing they are a danger to Steven Turner, the key witness. Robin Turner's detention hearing was set for July 9 and Adams' for July 10. Investigators are still analyzing a reciprocating saw found at the home with a blood-like substance on the blade.
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