Janice Cook’s disappearance became a murder investigation after deputies traced her last contact to a man now charged in her death.
CLINTON, Mo. — The search for Janice Cook began with silence, an abandoned vehicle and a dog found alone before Missouri investigators traced her last known phone activity to a man now accused of murder.
Cook, 43, was reported missing April 9 after those close to her said her social media activity had stopped after March 27. Police said her car was found abandoned the next day, and her dog was located about a mile from that spot. Those details pushed deputies to examine whether Cook had disappeared by choice or had met with foul play.
Friends and relatives told investigators Cook would not have abandoned her dog. That statement became one of the early human details in a case that soon moved through phone records, witness interviews and a rural property search. Police said Cook’s last known location was Windsor, Missouri, and that her final contact was Billy Tabor, 70, a man who lived there. When deputies questioned Tabor, he said he knew Cook and that she had been at his residence during the early morning hours of March 28. Tabor said Cook left after a “couple of hours,” but police said he could not give an exact time. That gap became important as investigators tried to rebuild Cook’s final known movements.
The case changed again when investigators heard about an alleged comment Tabor made to a woman who knew Cook by the nickname J.J. Tabor allegedly told the woman she “would not have to worry about J.J. anymore.” When asked if he had killed Cook, he allegedly laughed and walked away without responding. The public filing does not say when or where that exchange took place, but authorities included it in the probable cause statement used to support the criminal charge. The remark is not the only evidence described in the filing, but it helped deepen suspicion after Tabor had already placed Cook at his residence near the time she disappeared.
On April 30, deputies received information from a neighboring county that another person had been at Tabor’s residence on the night Cook was believed to have gone missing. That witness told police he arrived at about 2 a.m. March 28 and saw Tabor pacing in an agitated state. The witness said Cook was lying on the ground and appeared to be dead. According to investigators, the witness then described a grim sequence in which Tabor allegedly tied ropes to Cook, attached them to a Honda CR-V and dragged her body farther down the property. Tabor then allegedly called for help digging a grave, and the witness said Cook was wrapped in black fabric and buried in a large hole.
The witness also told investigators Tabor threatened to shoot him if he did not move Cook’s vehicle and belongings to Johnson County. After Tabor returned him home, the witness said he saw a black revolver on a table. That claim may explain why Cook’s vehicle was found away from her body and why investigators treated the abandoned car as part of a broader set of clues. Authorities have not said whether the dog was found near the car, near a different route or near a place tied to the vehicle’s movement. They have said the dog was located about a mile from the same area where the vehicle was abandoned.
For a missing-person case, the timeline matters. Cook’s social media activity stopped after March 27. Her vehicle was found abandoned March 28. Police said Tabor admitted Cook was at his home during the early morning hours of March 28. A witness said he arrived at that home around 2 a.m. and saw Cook on the ground. Cook was formally reported missing April 9. Investigators received the key witness information April 30. Tabor and Colby Eisel, 39, were later arrested, and deputies said remains believed to be Cook’s were recovered after the witness showed them the burial site. The timeline laid out by police leaves some unknowns, including exactly when Cook died and when her vehicle was moved.
Authorities have not publicly detailed the relationship among Cook, Tabor and Eisel. They have not said why Cook was at Tabor’s residence, what led to her death or what evidence connects Eisel to the handling of the body. Eisel is charged with abandonment of a corpse, the same corpse-related charge filed against Tabor. Tabor is the only defendant charged with first-degree murder. The different charges suggest investigators believe the two men had different roles, but the sheriff’s office has not released a full account of Eisel’s alleged actions. No plea information or defense response was included in the publicly available account.
The Henry County Sheriff’s Office said human remains were recovered from Tabor’s property and that authorities believed they were Cook’s. Officials said they had contacted her family but were still waiting for forensic confirmation. That testing could establish the identity of the remains and may help determine the cause and manner of death. The probable cause statement, as described publicly, does not list an autopsy result. It also does not disclose whether investigators found physical evidence on the Honda CR-V, in the ground, on the black fabric or in the location where Cook was allegedly first seen lying on the property.
The case now sits in court and in the hands of forensic examiners. Tabor was questioned again by police, invoked his right to counsel and was arrested. He is being held without bond at the Henry County Jail. His bond hearing was scheduled for May 5. Eisel is also being held at the same jail on a $250,000 cash-only bond. His next court date was not available when the case was reported. Prosecutors will have to prove the charges through witness testimony, records, physical evidence and forensic results. Tabor and Eisel remain presumed innocent unless convicted.
Cook’s disappearance first raised concern because the details did not fit the life her family and friends knew. Her online presence stopped, her car was left behind and her dog was found alone. Those clues led investigators to her last contact, then to a witness, then to a burial site. The public record still does not answer every question, but it shows how a missing-person report became a murder case built around the final hours police say Cook spent in Windsor.
As of May 23, authorities say the remains found on the property are believed to be Cook’s, with confirmation pending. The next steps are expected in forensic findings and the Henry County court docket.
Author note: Last updated May 23, 2026.