Crime & Safety

Slain Teen's Body Incinerated, Unable To Be Found: St. Pete Police

Police say they are not able to retrieve the remains of a missing girl who was killed and dismembered in St. Pete, a report says.

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — The remains of a missing teenage girl who was beaten, killed and dismembered after being lured to a St. Pete home cannot be recovered, police said, per WFLA.

St. Pete Police said the remains of Miranda Corsette, 16, will not be located because they were taken to a transfer station after being placed in a dumpster, WFLA reported. The remains were then taken to an incinerator, the news outlet reported.

Attorney Bryant Camareno, who is not associated with the case, told WFLA the absence of a body, coupled with Corsette's history of running away, could present obstacles when the case is tried in court.

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Couple Steven Gress, 35, and Michelle Brandes, 37, have been arrested in connection with Corsette's disappearance and death, police said in the past.

Brandes was charged on suspicion of first-degree murder, and Gress was charged on suspicion of kidnapping, police said.

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Police said Gress was already jailed on unrelated charges after being arrested on March 5. He was accused of pointing a harpoon at Brandes and possessing drugs.


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Corsette on Valentine's Day was lured through a social media app to Gress' 7th Avenue North home, police previously said. After meeting him, she went home and returned to his duplex the next day, police said.

Nine days later, she was reported missing to the Gulfport Police Department.

Corsette had stayed with Gress and Brandes; police said Corsette was beaten during a Feb. 20 dispute before being killed sometime between Feb. 20 and Feb. 24.

Gress was accused of putting the teen's body in a car and driving it to a house on Mallory Drive in Largo.

Police said evidence at the Largo home showed her body was dismembered, driven to Hillsborough County and put in a dumpster in Ruskin, where it was ultimately taken to an incinerator.

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