Woman Charged in Missing Lottery Winner's Killing

Feb. 2, 2010— -- The woman whose boyfriend owned the property where missing lottery winner Abraham Shakespeare's body was found was arrested today in connection with his killing.

Dorice "DeeDee" Moore, 37, was charged as an accessory after the fact to first-degree murder, Hillsborough County, Fla., Sheriff David Gee said.

Earlier today Moore denied she killed Shakespeare.

No one else has been charged, but the sheriff said investigators believed there were others involved in the killing.

"I won't say we have identified all of the players involved," Gee said. "We're going to find out everyone that was involved. We're going to seek justice."

Shakespeare was killed on April 6 or 7, 2009, at the house next door to the property where he was buried, police said today.

Moore allegedly asked an unnamed witness if he knew anyone who was awaiting sentencing to prison and would be willing to take the rap forkilling Shakespeare in exchange for $50,000, The Associated Press reported, citing an arrest affidavit.

She also allegedly told an unnamed witness to dig up Shakespeare's body and move it somewhere else, and showed the person the grave on Jan. 25, the affidavit said.

Shakespeare, 43, from Lakeland, Fla., hasn't been seen since April, even though he wasn't reported missing until November. His disappearance has churned up a cast of characters who, police say, may have been more interested in his money than in his life.

Shakespeare made headlines in 2006 when he won $31 million in the Florida Lottery, only to be sued the next year by a co-worker who alleged that Shakespeare had stolen the winning tickets from him. A jury sided with Shakespeare in October 2007 and he took home a lump sum of $17 million.

Shakespeare's Remains Found Under Concrete Slab

His remains were found Jan. 28, after days of digging in the woods on a rural property in Plant City, Fla., and after heavy equipment had been brought in to break through a large piece of concrete. An autopsy on Jan. 29 confirmed that the body was that of Shakespeare. The identity was determined through fingerprints, the sheriff's office said.

"There had been a 30-foot-by-30-foot concrete slab that had been poured," said Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman Debbie Carter. "The human remains had been found about five feet under the concrete."

At the time, authorities would not say where the tip came from or even when it came in. Public records show the property off Highway 60 is owned by Shar Krasniqi, the man Polk County Sheriff Grady Judd has identified as the boyfriend of Moore.

Moore's business, American Medical Professionals, is listed in Krasniqi's name.

Carter declined to comment on what exactly was found in the grave, only that it was clear the body had been there for a while.

Woman Charged in Missing Lottery Winner's Killing

Moore, who befriended Shakespeare in early 2009, when his millions were dwindling, has said throughout the investigation that she only helped Shakespeare vanish to get away from people asking him for loans.

Moore said today that she was not Shakespeare's girlfriend, but she wanted to help him.

Though Judd has described Moore as a "con artist," she said today that everything she did was what Shakespeare himself wanted.

"I wish, I hate to say this, but I wish I did a lot of things differently, but I've never did anything unethically, unprofessional, or anything he did notwant done," she said. "Everything he wanted done, all that stuff that they keep bringing out, that has, all has witnesses to back it up.

"Every bit of the money was done properly, professionally, and they're not going to be able to find any default in that," she said. "I have too many witnesses to say what he wanted done, why he wanted it done, and how he wanted it done, so I have witnesses on every bit of that."

Even before the charges against her were announced, Moore said she had no fear of being arrested.

"I'm not scared of going to jail for murder, because there is no jury that's going to convict me," she said. "They are saying that I took a gun, put it up, and killed another human being, and I would never ever, ever do that. So, no, I don't think any jury would ever convict me of that."

According to Polk County authorities, Moore had made several attempts to make it look as if Shakespeare had been communicating with his family -- offering someone a $200,000 house in exchange for reporting a false sighting, sending his son $5,000 in cash for his birthday and sending text messages -- even though Shakespeare had already disappeared.

In February 2009, two months before Shakespeare was last confirmed to have been seen, Moore opened up a limited liability account with his money and gave herself signing authority, according to the Polk County Sheriff's Office. She then rewarded herself with $1 million, which she spent on a Corvette, a Hummer and lavish vacations.

The only previous arrest that had any connection to the case came in late January when Polk County authorities arrested Lakeland police officer Troy McKay Young, charging him with providing Moore with confidential information from law enforcement databases in exchange for compensation.