The Murder of Debra Novacluse
For this case, I watched an episode of See No Evil. It’s season 11 episode 10, titled ‘The Man in the Cowboy Hat.’
A woman is found dead in a motel room.
Background
Debra Novacluse was only 52 years old at the time of her death. She had a passion for riding horses. She had gotten involved and excelled in the junior rodeo circuit, and won many awards.
Debra was described as fun and bubbly and always had a smile on her face. Debra and her former boyfriend both had a passion for motorcycles. He suddenly passed away in January 2016 from a heart attack. It devastated Debra, but in August 2016, she decided to take a road trip to Kamloops, British Columbia.
Debra Novacluse
Debra with her older sister
The 911 Call
Around 11:30 am on August 27, 2016, the manager of the Super 8 in Kamloops called 911. He told the dispatcher that something suspicious had been found in one of the rooms. He had been too afraid to enter the room, but the housekeeper that had cleaned the room thought a homicide had taken place.
The Royal Mounted Police arrived and entered Room 112. One detective immediately noticed that one of the two beds was more elevated than the other. A sleeping bag was found under the bed. Inside the sleeping bag was the body of a deceased woman.
It was clear that there were signs of trauma. She was only found wearing underwear. There were a few blood smears in the bathroom and blood on the mattress.
The autopsy report revealed that the victim had died from multiple blunt-force trauma injuries and strangulation.
The Super 8 Motel located at 1521 Hugh Allan Dr, Kamloops, BC
The Cowboy
The police learned that Room 112 had been registered to David Albert. The manager described him as being in his 40s-50s and wearing a cowboy hat. He had left his phone number when he registered for the room.
The motel had surveillance cameras at the entrance, parking lot, and hallways.
Around midnight on August 26, David returned to the motel. He could be seen walking into the motel wearing the cowboy hat that the manager had described. He was also wearing jeans, boots, and a flannel shirt.
Around 12:28 am, David could be seen on camera passing the front desk. An unknown male and female followed him to his room. It wasn’t the same woman that had been found in the sleeping bag. This woman had pink hair, and the victim had dark hair.
The Casino
Just hours before he and his friends entered Room 112, David was seen walking through the motel parking lot. He walked over to the drivers’ side of a parked truck and was seen talking to the driver. A female gets out of the truck. The woman was petite and had dark-colored hair, just like the victim.
They walked into the motel hand in hand and walked into Room 112. At 7:45 pm, David walked out of the room alone. He casually walked out of the parking lot and out of the camera frame. The police learned that he had walked to the Cascades Casino across the street.
Around 8 pm, David entered the casino and appeared to be making conversation with just about everyone. Outside the casino, David met the woman with pink hair.
They left the casino together in the woman’s car, a black Sunfire with pink details. Photos of the car were sent to other police agencies.
The man and woman stayed in David’s motel room until 4:16 am.
The Unknown Female
The police ran the phone number that David had left on his motel registration. His full name was David Albert Miller, and the police were able to obtain his driver's license.
On August 25, David’s spouse reported him missing. She had mentioned the name Debra Novacluse. She said that Debra was David’s acquaintance, and she believed they had been having an affair.
The police received a call about a hit on the BOLO that they had put out for the black Sunfire. The car belonged to a woman named Jessica. She had been staying at a nearby motel with a male friend.
The police told Jessica that they were investigating the death of a woman at the Super 8. She agreed to make a statement at the police station.
She had met David at the Cascades Casino. She said David had whistled at her as she was leaving the casino.
At the time that David approached her, she had been doing a Facebook Live video. Jessica could be heard saying, “Did you hear that? Free drinks at the Super 8 room 112.” She agreed to go as long as she could bring her male friend. David agreed. She also put his driver's license up to the video and said “If anything happens to me.”
She and David picked up her friend on the way to the motel. Jessica said she met a woman named Deb inside the room. All 4 of them were drinking inside the room until about 4 am. Jessica and her friend left due to tension between David and Deb. She said Deb was still alive when they left.
The Manhunt
At 8:42 am on August 27, David was seen on surveillance leaving the room. He walked to Debra’s truck and grabbed the sleeping bag that Debra was found in.
An hour and a half later, David walked out of the room again. He walked out the back door and left in Debra’s truck.
On August 29, 2016, the police were able to trace David’s phone to Ontario. The police obtained the surveillance footage from the airport. David purchased a ticket on August 27.
On August 30, a team in Ontario followed and surveilled David. They took photos of him and sent them to the Royal Mounted Police.
David was followed to a car dealership where he discarded a bag of items. Inside the bag, were David’s airline tickets, and the clothing he had been wearing on the night of the murder. The flannel shirt had both his and Debra’s DNA on it.
Once the police had the evidence they needed for an arrest warrant, David got rid of his phone and stopped using his bank card.
The Arrest
He was eventually found on one of the busiest highways in Ontario attempting to hitchhike.
The surveillance team lost track of David again. They hoped he hadn’t gotten into a vehicle, which would have been headed toward the U.S.-Canadian border. But the police eventually found him sleeping in a ditch, and he was arrested.
In his interrogation, David said things were cloudy and he didn’t have all the answers for them. At first, he said he didn’t do it.
Later, he admitted to knowing Debra. He had been drinking a lot that night. he said he had sex with Debra and strangled her. He claimed it was accidental, but the evidence proved that it wasn’t accidental.
David said he tried to tie her up 2-3 times. He wanted to remove her body from the room but she was too heavy. He then discarded items that he had taken from the motel room when he drove away in her truck.
The police found items in bags that had belonged to Debra. David had discarded the items on the highway. Some of the items included Debra’s clothing and bloody pillowcases from the motel room.
The Conviction
David’s defense team stuck to his accidental death story during the trial. He was found guilty of second-degree murder, and sentenced to life with the possibility of parole after 15 years. His sentence devastated Debra’s loved ones.
It’s believed that David and Debra had gotten into an argument after David’s friends left at 4 am. David beat Debra to death and rolled her into a sleeping bag. David then fled and discarded evidence along the way.
The only photo I could find of David Albert Miller (this is the surveillance photo of him and Debra in the motel).
FINAL THOUGHTS
It’s really sad that David could one day be released and walk the streets. Jessica and her friend are very lucky that he didn’t kill them too. David seemed like he could charm just about anyone, but he clearly has a dark side. It’s heartbreaking that Debra wanted to get away and clear her head and was never able to return home.
Sources
https://thecinemaholic.com/debra-novacluse-murder-where-is-david-albert-miller-now/
