Details of horrific murder of Marine’s wife, Brittany Killgore: “she just wouldn’t die, the miserable whore”

This is a horrific story on many fronts, very hard to find much of anything good in it.  Brittany Dawn Killgore's Marine husband, Lance Cpl Cory Killgore did not kill her. He was in Afghanistan at the time.

Marine whose wife was killed wants to 'use this tragedy for good' April 26, 2012 The husband of the slain Brittany Dawn Killgore said in a statement Thursday that he is searching for a way "to use this tragedy for good."

Cory and Brittany Dawn Killgore in happier times

What doesn't yet seem clear is if one, or three people did. I've rounded up links and a few photos from some quick research last night but haven't had time to sort it all out.

Jessica Lopez said in a seven-page letter that she acted after the victim told her that she had a "whole night planned" with Louis Ray Perez.

Lopez, 25, said she then shot Killgore with a stun gun, wrapped a rope around a neck, buried her face in a pillow and strangled her.

"She barely moved but she just wouldn't die, the miserable whore," the letter said.

This via the Daily News:

Kinky postings on bondage websites have been linked to a person of interest in the murder of a woman married to a U.S. Marine based out of Camp Pendleton.

The person of interest in the death of Brittany Killgore also happens to be a Marine — Louis Ray Perez. The 16-year veteran is a bondage aficionado who frequents alternative sex websites, CBS News 8 reported.

More here from April as regards the wife: "Murdered Marine wife's blog reveals her fears about getting married and divorce"

Unfortunately, another Marine Louis Ray Perez involved with two women as part of what appears to be an S&M relationship, if not ring of some sort, most likely had a hand in it, or did it himself.

Marine Staff Sgt. Louis Ray Perez, 45, who was already in jail on charges of illegal possession of an assault rifle, was arrested on new charges Tuesday in connection with Brittany Dawn Killgore's murder, CNN reports.

Sadly, it appears Brittany Dawn Killgore had asked, or was going to ask Cory for a divorce. Somewhere in all that, she accepted a date with Louis Ray Perez. Even what little is known for certain from there is chilling, given the circumstances. This looks to be the most detailed account of events I could find on line.

Perez told the deputy he was helping Brittany pack her belongings to move, about 4 p.m. the afternoon of Friday April 13, at her place in Fallbrook. Perez said he asked Brittany to go out on a dinner-dance boat with him, but she said she was too tired. He left, but then at about 5:10 p.m., Brittany sent him a text saying she wanted to go to downtown San Diego with him after all, he told the deputy.

Brittany went to her friend’s apartment to borrow a purple floral dress with sequins, and when she left she told her friend she was going home to “get ready to leave with Perez.”

But the worried friend told investigators that just thirteen minutes after Perez picked Brittany up, she got a text from Brittany’s phone which said: “Help.” The friend texted back: “What?” and “R u okay” and “Brittany are u okay. I am freaking out here.”

It wasn’t until 8:05 p.m. that the friend finally got a text back from Brittany’s phone, it said: “Yes I love this party.” But the friend was immediately suspicious because Brittany never used the word “yes” in her texts – she used “yeah.” The worried friend kept sending texts, asking Brittany to phone her, but Brittany never called her.

Someone told investigators that he saw Perez back his truck down the driveway of the home he stayed at, in Fallbrook, “around dusk time.” This is the same time the message “help” came from Brittany’s phone. Perez reportedly backed up to a large sailboat located at the very back of the property, and then opened the rear cargo hatch of his vehicle. The witness noticed a ladder leaning up against the mostly-white boat – the boat was propped up above the ground — the witness said he had not noticed a ladder there before. And the witness had never seen Perez back into the driveway before, it was a circular drive and usually backing up would not be necessary.

Perez told detectives he picked up Killgore at her apartment about 7:30 p.m. – deputies noticed this would have been too late to make the dinner-dance boat. He said he drove straight to downtown San Diego, and dropped Brittany off in front of the Whiskey Girl Night Club while he found a place to park. It took him about ten or fifteen minutes to park and walk to the night club, and then Perez said “he was unable to locate Killgore.” He didn’t bother to actually go inside any nightclub while he looked for her, but said he did look for about thirty minutes, and then he left and “headed home.” At one point, he said he turned around to go back to look for her again, but then he went home for the night, without ever finding her.

Investigators collected text messages from Perez’ cell to Killgore’s cell phone, these started at 9:20 p.m. The texts were: “Your friends are calling me worried” and “OK now I am worried too” and “Musical too loud call me back” and “Go outside & call me baxk.” At no time did Killgore’s phone respond to any of those texts.

Cell phone records showed both Perez’ and Brittany’s phones were using towers in Fallbrook during the time he said they were downtown.

Enter Dorothy Maraglino and Jessica Lopez and what you have is a very sad and even more ugly mess.

Killgore was last seen April 13 in a purple evening gown, three days after she filed for divorce from Lance Cpl. Cory Killgore, who was serving in Afghanistan at the time.

Lopez wrote that she believed Killgore was trying to come between her, Perez and Dorothy Maraglino. The three suspects all lived together at a home in Fallbrook, north of San Diego. All three have pleaded not guilty to murder.

Detectives found what they said looked like a "sex room/dungeon" in the Fallbrook home, with "several bondage type apparatuses; toys and tools."

In her letter, Lopez called Perez the "Master" and told police he wasn't responsible for the killing. Detectives found the letter in a San Diego hotel where Lopez was discovered with self-inflicted cuts four days after Killgore disappeared.

And the more one reads, the uglier it gets.

Lopez wrote that she believed Killgore was trying to come between her, Perez and Dorothy Maraglino. The three suspects all lived together at a home in Fallbrook, north of San Diego. All three have pleaded not guilty to murder.

Detectives found what they said looked like a "sex room/dungeon" in the Fallbrook home, with "several bondage type apparatuses; toys and tools."

In her letter, Lopez called Perez the "Master" and told police he wasn't responsible for the killing. Detectives found the letter in a San Diego hotel where Lopez was discovered with self-inflicted cuts four days after Killgore disappeared.

The letter — below a mirror that was scrawled with the word "PIGS READ THIS" — accused police of "complete incompetence."

Dorothy Maraglino

Jessica Lopez

Louis Perez