BUENA PARK, Calif. — A reality-TV contestant was charged with murder Thursday in the death of his ex-wife as the manhunt for the suspect spread to Canada and police provided gruesome new details about the killing.
Police said Ryan Alexander Jenkins removed the teeth and fingers of Jasmine Fiore, presumably to impede authorities in their efforts to identify the naked body after it was found stuffed into a suitcase in a California trash bin over the weekend.
The former swimsuit model and Jenkins were briefly married after a quickie Las Vegas wedding this year and had been fighting in recent months. Prosecutors said the two checked into a San Diego hotel Aug. 13 , and Jenkins checked out the next morning.
Fiore was not seen alive again.
He vanished after the body was found Saturday, and Buena Park police Lt. Steve Holliday said he’s possibly armed with a handgun.
Jenkins is believed to have driven 1,000 miles to Washington state and then hopped in a boat to a peninsula on the border, where he walked into Canadian territory. A Canadian police official said ground, air and canine units are searching for Jenkins.
He was a contestant on the VH1 reality-TV show “Megan Wants a Millionaire.”
