SAN ANTONIO – The day after the wife of an Air Force major was reported missing, Bexar County Sheriff’s Office investigators found evidence at the couple’s home that raised red flags.
BCSO Deputy Richard Lozano testified on Day 3 of the murder trial of Andre McDonald, who is charged with murder and tampering of evidence charges in connection with the death of his wife, Andreen McDonald, in 2019.
Lozano told jurors that a team of deputies was dispatched to the McDonald’s home on March 2, 2019, to make a welfare check on Andreen, one day after she was reported missing by her mother. Lozano said the deputies found the garage door broken off its hinges. He said it raised a concern because the garage door was not broken the day before.
“It raised a red flag and we thought somebody was hurt,” Lozano said on the witness stand.
WATCH: Highlights from Day 3 of the Andre McDonald murder trial
Lozano said when they went into the garage, they noticed a shovel in the back of a car. It was later revealed that Andre McDonald had allegedly backed into the garage door before leaving the home, which caused the damage. Lozano said a fellow deputy gained entry into the home through an open window, and when the team made it inside, they yelled to see if anyone was home. When they got no response, they left the home to get a search warrant.
After securing the search warrant, members of the BCSO Crime Scene Investigation team entered the home and found a shovel, a hammer, clothing, a flashlight, shoes, two gas cans hidden in trash bags and a torn-up receipt from a Lowe’s home improvement store. Video shown to the jury on Tuesday showed McDonald purchasing some of those items at that hardware store on Loop 1604 and Blanco Road. Andre McDonald was arrested on March 3 for tampering with evidence.
BCSO Sgt. John Mahan, who was among the lead investigators in the case, testified about the day that Andreen McDonald’s remains were found on private property about five miles from the McDonald home.
“(Her) remains were found next to or amongst animal remains,” Mahan testified.
He said a cross tattoo was visible on Andreen McDonald’s remains and a wig believed to belong to her was also found following a thorough search on July 12 on the property on Specht Road in north Bexar County. An arrest warrant on a murder charge for Andre McDonald was executed the next day.
Also testifying Wednesday was a cellphone analyst who gave a detailed presentation from Feb. 28, 2019, that showed all the locations, phone calls and text messages made by Andre and Andreen McDonald. Among the texts was an argument between the couple regarding a business Andreen was going to open in her name only and a reference to a man she was having an affair with.
The jury also saw video of Andre McDonald purchasing a pistol on March 2, but for reasons that haven’t been revealed, he left the gun shop without the handgun and his ID.
If Andre McDonald is found guilty, he could face up to life in prison.
The trial will resume at 9 a.m. Thursday in the 399th District Court. Judge Frank Castro is presiding over the trial.
KSAT will be livestreaming the trial from gavel-to-gavel on KSAT.com, KSAT Plus and on KSAT’s YouTube channel.