Land O’Lakes, FL - She was a horsewoman, a dancer, an artistic soul, a “quiet woman”, say neighbors. Too quiet, Saturday night and into Sunday morning, because she was dead. Someone shot Diane Yeager-Lombard to death on her front porch on Saturday, May 3. Her body lay there after the shooting - a neighbor saw her, but thought she was sunbathing. But Diane didn’t move. She never moved again.
So what happened? Neighbors reported hearing a gunshot sometime after 5:00 p.m. on Saturday. Someone saw a blue truck speeding down the road not far from Diane’s home. Other than that, nobody saw much. Why neighbors thought she was sunbathing after five on a Saturday, I don’t know. It was probably still sunny then in Florida, but even so, it seems a little strange that nobody checked, if just to be sure she wasn’t asleep.
So who killed Diane Yeager-Lombard? Her Myspace page yields no real clues. The page is tasteful and pretty. Her daughter Erica, 19, is a major focus of Diane’s attention. She loved her horse and her Avalanche. She was trim and pretty and vain about her age - her Myspace says she’s 42, but really, she was 51. She pulled off 42, though. I’d have bought it, so good for her. There doesn’t seem to be a man in the picture - at least there wasn’t in March, when she last logged in. One eerie little aside: her Myspace link is http://www.myspace.com/youwillremembermewhen. And I have no doubt that’s true.
On the surface, there seems to be no motive for Diane Yeager-Lombard’s murder. Who would want to hurt a vibrant, intelligent woman? Who would just shoot and take off? The killing seems impersonal - more of an assassination or execution than a rage killing, unless there’s evidence being withheld.
Today, the Pasco County Sheriff’s Department says that on Thursday, May 1, Diane flagged down a passing deputy who was in her neighborhood to ask him a question. One neighbor says that Diane was having some trouble with a man who was doing yard work for her. Whatever the issue, Diane ended up filing a harassment report right then. The Sheriff’s office isn’t talking except to say that they are following leads and “keeping it close to the vest”.
I hope, for Diane Yeager-Lombard and for her daughter Erica, that the killer is found very soon.
Turtletop
JusticeForCaylee
testpattern
Shroomer
AnotherMother
madmommy
Cheyenne
majaka
Peeperann
1purplemoon
20 responses so far ↓
1
Indrid Cold
May 6, 2008 at 9:23 pm -Her only MySpace blog entry made me think something happened in her personal life back in August of last year.
http://blog.myspace.com/youwillremembermewhen
Quote from that page –
Remember that the strongest iron goes through the fire.
I just wondered if she’d been through a ‘fire.’
2
Lilbay
May 6, 2008 at 10:45 pm -I wonder what happened in April of this year with her. On her daughters page one of the posts from one of her friends in April asks how her Mom is doing and said her and her parents are keeping her in their prayers?
I hope they find whomever done it.
3
mammasweets
May 6, 2008 at 11:20 pm -Geez, Right around the corner from me…..
Florida is sinking from the weight of these fuckers…Can someone throw me a rope or something?
4
Fate
May 7, 2008 at 12:19 am -I’m not trying to be a dick here but …………..(and I know some of you are thinking this)
How do you look at someone who has been shot to death and think - “Oh she’s sunbathing”?
Other than only her feet sticking out being the indicator, I would think even ketchup spilling on someone’s chest, being the answer, be a bit out of the ordinary.
I hope they find her killer.
Noone, deserves to die like that. She wasn’t buying crack, she wasn’t hurting anyone and yet someone felt the need to put an end to her life.
Ridiculous.
This day, this world, this news, continues to become moreso.
5
Rob Taylor
May 7, 2008 at 3:51 am -I know I’m supposed to comment on the story but that was a really good piece of crime writing. I don’t know it just touched me.
I’m also a little suspicious of the neighbors sunbathing excuse. I’ll bet they’re scared to talk.
6
Undeniable Truth
May 7, 2008 at 9:19 am -Her daughter’s comments on her myspace page deserve quoting:
Jan 17 2008 11:11 PM
I love you, mom!!
Oct 9 2007 5:57 PM
you are the best mom any daughter could ever wish for! I love you so much!
Sep 10 2007 12:04 PM
I LOVE YOU MOM
7
thepooh5
May 7, 2008 at 9:20 am -What a tragedy not only for the victim, but the daughter. I’m sure she’ll be lost without her mom.
8
Lizard
May 7, 2008 at 4:01 pm -Pasco Sheriff detectives have released the name of a suspect wanted for questioning in the murder of a Land O’ Lakes woman on Saturday….Detectives want to question Gusto Arturo Moreno-Gonzales….He is an illegal alien from Mexico and is believed to be driving a blue or gray 2002 Toyota Tundra X-cab truck, unknown license plate.
http://www.abcactionnews.com/n.....71a867a903
9
impqueen
May 7, 2008 at 4:09 pm -Thanks, Lizard!
10
carol13
May 7, 2008 at 4:54 pm -How long does it take to drive from Florida back to the Mexican border? Yeah, he’s already gone. And even if they do catch him there, it takes the death penalty off the table, I hate that.
11
feisty76
May 7, 2008 at 9:41 pm -Her daughter wrote a note on her MySpace page today.
” May 5 2008 3:18 PM
“God grant me serenity to accept what I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can and the wisdom to know the difference.” I love you mom. RIP.”
This is so sad. The daughter seems like such a nice woman. Like most killings, it is damn senseless, but some killings just feel more senseless than others. This is one of those instances.
12
Wonder
May 8, 2008 at 1:16 am -didn’t know if you followed erica to her friend’s page - as to why they were praying for her mom.
Erica Apr 14 2008 2:28 PM
I’m doin well. I broke of the engagement and am falling for my friend of almost 8years! yeah…lot to catch up on. also, My mom is going to be okay! She is going to go in for surgery soon. It is in its early stages after all, so yeah. I appreciate your prayer as it is helping my mother through her tough times. I love ya girl! thanks a bunch.
miss ya!
13
Ceronius
May 8, 2008 at 11:58 am -I think that this is such a senseless crime/murder. As all murders are. I am not surprised to hear that an illegal alien is involved in it. It is time that the citizens take this illegal alien situation into its own hands since the government does not want to do anything to protect us. Applications for CHL licenses is up 37% here in Texas.
Hopefully someone sees this piece of crap and does the rest of us a favor and shoot him on sight.
May God rest Diane’s soul and lift the pain of her Daughters loss.
14
Kathy
May 8, 2008 at 12:14 pm -So are you gonna walk up to each person and ask for proof of citizenship before you murder them or or you just gonna shoot anything that is brown skinned? Also, are you gonna just shoot them all, including the hard working ones that pick your crops and cause no trouble?
And while you are at it, since it is the people giving them jobs that keeps em coming over here, are you gonna shoot those law breaking american citizens too?
Take the law into your own hands. Seriously, you need to educate yourself before you start talking out of your ass.
15
impqueen
May 8, 2008 at 12:34 pm -Murderers come in all colors, from all places. Whether this guy has his papers in line or not has nothing to do with a woman who is dead.
If he shot her, and he is the murderer, and he is illegal, he is still a murderer. If he was legal, he’d still be a murderer. Right now, nobody has yet been arrested or charged. If he is charged, I will call him a lot of names, but his status as an immigrant won’t matter to me.
If he was here legally, would that change things for you, Ceronius? What if he turns out to be innocent and a white person, or legal person of another color, is the killer?
16
Mandella
May 8, 2008 at 12:49 pm -I should have said so when I originally thought it…..But I knew the second that you posted the update with the suspect information that somebody was going to start ranting about the illegal immigrants running amock in the US.
When I first saw that update, I thought to myself “Oh shit. I wish like hell he weren’t an illegal immigrant, because this is just another great example for all the xenophobic bigotted assholes.”
And I was right.
17
Ruby
May 30, 2008 at 11:05 am -Some updated information: the suspect was indicted for this murder, and his truck was found abandoned near the Mexican border. Also, it sounds like it may not have been a dispute over work, as previously reported, but rather he was pursuing her. Here’s the story:
“Land O’ Lakes, Florida - Pasco County Sheriff’s deputies say a murder suspect’s pickup truck has been found abandoned near the Mexican border.
Sheriff’s spokesman Kevin Doll says detectives got word Tuesday that Gusto Arturo Moreno-Gonzales’ 2002 Toyota Tundra X-cab had been recovered in Alamo, Texas. That’s near Brownsville.
They’re working with authorities there to have the truck processed for evidence. But deputies have not been able to locate Moreno-Gonzales. They believe he may have crossed the border since he is a Mexican native.
A grand jury indicted Moreno-Gonzales in the murder of Diane Yeager-Lombard earlier this month at her home in Land O’Lakes.
The victim’s mother, Betty Ames, told 10 News Moreno-Gonzales met her daughter while digging in the area for new telephone company lines. Ames says Moreno-Gonzales became obsessed with Yeager-Lombard and would not take no for an answer.”
18
WryBread
May 30, 2008 at 11:34 am -Yeah, his immigrant status does have to do with it. It’s not as if a murder is bound to happen because of Fate and just anyone who happens to be handy is forcibly slotted in to commit it, so if it hadn’t been him it would have been someone else.
If he wasn’t here illegally, the woman wouldn’t have been his murder victim. Doesn’t matter than there are nice illegal aliens. They are here illegally. If this guy was in his home country, who knows what crimes he would not or would be committing. But this woman would be alive.
19
SqueakyClean
May 30, 2008 at 11:45 am -EXACTLY.
20
thepooh5
May 30, 2008 at 1:07 pm -I’ll have to support that, as well. It has nothing to do with Mexicans or race. If they came from Holland, China, Germany, Africa, Japan, Australia, South America - any country I think all should be legal, if they want to live and work here in the US.
Nothing to do with color or race or religion - just be legal and pay taxes like every other working American.
Maybe he couldn’t get a visa - because he had been violent in his country. Had he been in his country, she wouldn’t have been murdered by him.
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