Jury Convicts Sarasota Man In 2003 Murder of Landlady Who Was Trying To Evict Him

SARASOTA COUNTY, FL – A Sarasota County jury on Tuesday convicted John Mellquist of second-degree murder in connection with the 2003 disappearance of his landlady, Anneliese Schweickardt -- a case that began as a "missing person" when a friend reported not hearing from the victim for months.

More than a decade ago, Schweickardt reportedly was in the process of evicting Mellquist, who rented a room in her Sarasota home. When initially contacted about her disappearance, Mellquist gave different accounts of her possible whereabouts -- all the while forging and cashing checks from her bank account and driving her car, according to the Sarasota County Sheriff's Office.

When the case was first opened in 2003, detectives and forensic technicians conducted searches of the woman's home and surrounding area which showed signs of a violent encounter inside the home, including significant blood-stain evidence that indicated she was likely murdered, the department said.

These discoveries, coupled with what detectives believe were Mellquist's lies during questioning, led investigators to suspect he killed her. Despite years of investigation, however, the victim's body was never found, the agency said.

Without a body and as Schweickardt had no immediate family or children, it took years to build a DNA profile of the victim from personal items left in the residence, deputies said. DNA advancements coupled with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement lab efforts, detectives said they could establish enough probable cause to arrest Mellquist in 2013.

Mellquist will be sentenced Aug. 29 before Sarasota County Circuit Judge Charles Roberts.

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