Josh Powell and 2 sons killed in house explosion

Susan Cox Powell is an American woman missing from West Valley City, Utah and last seen on December 6, 2009. She has not reappeared since her disappearance. Her disappearance has garnered national press attention, and police investigation is ongoing as of September 2011. Susan Powell's husband Joshua Powell and the couple's two children died on February 5, 2012 when their home exploded, presumably from a gas leak initiated by Joshua himself. Developments in 2010--2012 In January 2010, Joshua Powell moved to Puyallup, Washington, where he occupied a home with his sons and father[3][11] and indicated that he would rent the house in Utah.[12] The Facebook page for Susan Cox Powell was taken down for technical and identity-verification reasons on January 30--31, 2010. The page was subsequently re-established, and has over 45,000 members.[13][14] In August 2011, Utah police worked with Ely, Nevada authorities on a possible connection the Powell disappearance.[3] On September 14, 2011, Utah authorities discovered what they believed might have been a grave site and human remains while searching Topaz Mountain, a desert area near Nephi, Utah that Joshua had frequented as a campsite.[6] On September 15, 2011, excavation of the Topaz Mountain site found no human remains. There were signs of recent soil disturbance and shoveling, but after digging a few feet down police have been unable to find any remains, in spite of careful sifting of the soil. Federal anthropologists have also ruled out it being an ancient burial ground. Police are continuing to examine the site, and have offered no explanation as to why they previously announced the finding of remains, when none have actually been confirmed yet. "Right now, we haven't found anything except for these scents that these dogs are picking up," said West Valley City Police Lt. Bill Merritt. "We have not come across bones."[15] Relationships between and within the Powell and Cox families have become increasingly hostile over the past year. After a police raid on their home earlier this year, both Josh Powell and his father Steve spoke to major news outlets regarding journals that Susan had allegedly written, and about the relationship between Steve Powell and Susan. Steve Powell claimed that he and Susan were mutually falling in love prior to her disappearance, and he cited the content of the journals (written when Susan was a teen) as evidence to support his theory that she was mentally unstable and could have run away with another man. On September 23, 2011, a judge issued a permanent injunction forbidding Josh and Steven Powell from publishing any material from Susan's journals, ordering the pair to either return or destroy any journals already published.[16] On September 22, 2011, Steve Powell was arrested on charges of voyeurism and child pornography. Police say he had secretly videotaped numerous women and young girls, including Susan Powell. John Long, assistant Attorney General for Washington, said that Joshua Powell was a "subject" in the child porn investigation.[17] Chuck Cox (Susan Cox Powell's father) filed for custody of the children of Josh and Susan Powell the day after Steve Powell was arrested. A Washington court eventually granted temporary custody of the children to Chuck Cox.[18] A friend of Steven Powell claimed that he was preoccupied with pornography and "was hung up on [Susan] sexually, it seemed."[19] After Susan's disappearance, the friend reported Steven's seeming obsession with Susan to police. In late September 2011, Joshua Powell's sister, Jennifer Graves,[20] stated that she believes Joshua is "responsible for his wife's disappearance." By the end of September 2011, West Valley City had spent more than half a million dollars on the case. On September 28, 2011, Mayor Mike Winder indicated that he feels that the case was worth the expense. He said that "we feel that we are getting to that tipping point where we have more hot evidence than we have had in the past two years" and that the case is moving forward.[21] On February 5, 2012, Joshua Powell and his two sons were killed when their house in Washington state exploded. According to local authorities, the act appears to have been deliberate, as police are treating the case as a double homicide / suicide.[1] Read more: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disappearance_of_Susan_Powell