Man on the Stairs:
The Death of Marla Ware
June 3rd 1998 was windy and overcast in central New York, but the weather did not dampen the spirits of Marla Ware who had invited some friends over that evening to celebrate her upcoming 35th birthday. Little did she know, she had only days to live and that one of her party guests would become a focus of the police investigation into her death, the circumstances of which are bizarre.
Who was Marla Ware?
She grew up as Marla Greene in Oswego County, New York. Her father was a tenant farmer, said her brother Marc Greene. Their parents came from prior marriages - his father already had 4 children, and his mother bringing 2 children into the new family that would result in three more children. “I always joked about us being the 3 M’s – because it’s Marlene, Marc, and Marla,” said Marc.
But when Marla was 5 years old, her parents divorced and that was the beginning of Marla’s downfall, said Marc. “She (Marla) was bounced back and forth between the two of them. She lived with my mother for a while down in Florida, and we had to go down and pick her up and bring her back to New York,” he added.
Marla struggled throughout her life and eventually got involved with drugs and alcohol, according to her brother. She didn’t have steady employment that early summer of 1998, but she had been able to get into that apartment and according to friends, she always kept it neat and tidy.
Birthday Party 1 – June 3
At the birthday party Marla hosted at her one-bedroom[1] apartment were a small group of friends, according to Oswego Police Lt. Bryan Thompson who is handling the case today. He told APB Cold Case that one of the guests mentioned by witnesses was a man named Raymond Newton. “People that we spoke to… gave his name as the 2 of them being romantically linked, on and off again, seeing each other,” said Lt. Thompson.
During the night something happened that drew the attention of other party-goers, said Thompson, Ray Newton, then 40 years old, asked Marla to be his steady, full-time girlfriend, and he wanted to move in with her. “She basically says ‘no’ in front of all these people.
…he wanted to move in with her. “She basically says ‘no’ in front of all these people.”
And, all the reports were that Mr. Newton was very upset and didn’t talk to anybody the rest of the night, whereas, before he was being very boisterous and talking to the other guests and had no issues,” added Thompson.
Birthday Party 2 – June 4
The next day, Marla celebrated with another male friend named Frances “Fritz” Dann. He was 30 years older than Marla, and the characterization of their relationship is somewhat ambiguous. In the summer of 1998 he would have been 65 years old.
Frances Dann was alternately described as former boyfriend; on-again, off-again boyfriend; and ‘kind of’ boyfriend to Marla.
So, even though she’d already had one get-together with friends, Frances Dann stopped by with some food and a small cake to celebrate with her, said Marc Greene, recalling a phone conversation that his wife had with Marla around that time.
Stolen Money Order
We don’t know if Marla mentioned this to anyone other than police, but at some recent point she had reported a money order as stolen. Lt. Thompson said that on June 6th, there were reports that Newton was trying to get people to cash a money order. Shortly afterward, Lt. Thompson said that Newton stole a vehicle in Syracuse. That date of June 6th would become important later on.
Newton Seen at Marla’s Apartment Building
Lt. Thompson said that during the evening of June 9th or 10th, 1998 a man was entering Marla’s apartment building to visit her when he encountered Ray Newton coming down the stairs.
…a man was entering Marla’s apartment building to visit her when he encountered Ray Newton coming down the stairs.
Newton told the man that Marla was not feeling well and that they should leave, and both reportedly did, said police. But during that encounter, the man told police that Newton had his hands in his pockets and never shook the man’s hand, something uncharacteristic of Newton, he said.
Other “Boyfriend” Looking for Marla; Landlord Checks the Apartment
Marc Greene told APB Cold Case that Dann had stopped at his house, presumably in June or July 1998. “He never stopped without Marla, and says, have you seen your sister? I said no…” Apparently, he had been unable to reach her and was concerned. But, said Marc, Dann stopped by again a few days later. But by the fourth time that Dann stopped by Marc’s home still asking about Marla, Marc reached out to his other sister, Rosamond, and they called Marla’s landlord and asked if he would check on Marla. On July 23, 1998 the landlord reportedly went to the Mohawk Street apartment, noticing clutter and a bad smell that he attributed to garbage and a sink full of dirty dishes, according to a report in the Syracuse Post Standard.[2] Asked about the landlord checking on Marla’s apartment, Lt. Bryan Thompson said, “He actually went in and did a check, noticed a smell, but for whatever reason, just didn’t notice what was going on…. and left the apartment at that point.”
Family Goes to Apartment; Body Found
More days pass and still, no one has heard from Marla. Eleven days after the landlord checked her apartment, family members decide to go and check for themselves. It was now the height of summer in Upstate New York, which can be very hot and humid, and 1998 was no exception. When Marc and his sister Rosamond arrived, they were met with a foul stench inside the door. Marc recognized the odor of death, he said. He asked the landlord if Marla had a pet, and the landlord answered, ‘no’. Marc remembered telling the landlord, “well, it’s a possibility she’s in here because from what I’m smelling, it lines up with it.” Marc made his way through the small apartment. “So, I continued in through to the bedroom, and… all the sheets and everything were pulled off the bed, the blankets and everything,” remembered Marc. “And I noticed 2 suitcases and a duffel bag on top of the pile of blankets.” He continued farther into the room and made the startling discovery. “Up in one corner I could see what looked to be a hand sticking out from under the blanket.” Marc knew that it was Marla, and he immediately called police.
Police responded to the scene on the corner of Liberty Street and West Mohawk Street, near the Oswego High School. Lt. Thompson said that circumstances caused suspicion right away. “She was covered with several pillows and suitcases, and a sheet that was over the top of that. So immediately, it’s obviously a suspicious death,” said Thompson.
Police believe that Marla died around June 5th, 1998. And by the time her body was discovered on August 3rd, there was extensive decomposition.
No Official Cause of Death
Because of the condition of the body, Lt. Thompson said the medical examiner was unable to determine the cause and manner of Marla Ware’s death.
Police are unsure what happened to Marla but her apartment is treated as a crime scene. Evidence technicians comb through the apartment, securing evidence and taking photos and video of the scene. Simultaneously, detectives are interviewing neighbors, and the family members who found Marla’s body. But they also want to speak with anyone who was with Marla in her last hours or days.
Police Examine Newton
Because of the witness accounts from the gathering on June 3rd, police began looking into Ray Newton. There were some things that stood out in his background; Lt. Thompson said there are four unrelated investigations that occurred after Marla’s death which are “reference guide” to his behavior.
The first incident from 5 years before Marla’s death involved a brutal assault that was initially charged as an attempted murder.[3] In 1993, just outside of Oswego, NY, Newton and his then live-in girlfriend had been out for the evening, leaving a child with a babysitter, said Thompson. When they returned home, there was an argument in which Newton beat the girlfriend severely.
According to a report in the Syracuse Herald-Journal, the woman sustained broken ribs, a broken nose, collarbone, sinus cavity, eye socket, along with internal bleeding in the head. Lt. Thompson said that Newton allegedly threatened to kill the babysitter if she told anyone about the assault. It was also reported that Newton left the girlfriend without medical attention for 24 hours. The victim, who had slipped into a coma, spent 6 weeks in intensive care.
Reports say that Newton was initially charged with attempted murder, but accepted a plea bargain to felony assault and reckless endangerment. Prior to sentencing Newton’s girlfriend pleaded with the judge not to send Newton to prison, insisting that she believed his story that she slipped and fell rather than being assaulted[4]. But Newton was sentenced to a year in jail.
Lt. Thompson also told APB Cold Case about the 2006 assault of a woman who Newton was dating. “Mr. Newton actually slashed the throat of a girl he was dating with what they believed was either a small knife or some sort of crystal that he wore on his neck,” said Thompson. The woman was taken to the hospital and survived, he said. But curiously, after the woman had been taken to the hospital Newton remained at the residence even though they did not live together,” added Thompson. One published report said that Newton was convicted of reckless endangerment and criminal possession of a weapon after a trial.[5]
Then, in 2015, Ray Newton was involved in another incident in Oswego, New York at the Newton family homestead, said police. Newton’s mother had reportedly sustained a leg injury and required assistance. Lt. Thompson said that Mrs. Newton had asked for something to drink from her son. “At that point, he very, very calmly walks in, drags her to the floor and tries to suffocate her with a pillow.”
And in 2020, Newton would be arrested after an investigation into a burglary at the home of a member of the National Guard who had been deployed to New York City during the pandemic. Speaking about Ray Newton, Lt. Thompson said, “He ends up burglarizing the residence, stealing various items and actually lives in her house for an unknown amount of time.” Because Newton was not caught inside the apartment, detectives had to piece together various clues. Among them, hours of surveillance camera footage from neighbors. “During interviews with people in the neighborhood, this common thing kept coming up across interviews, they’ve been seeing what they called ‘the man in the trench coat’ in the area. A guy walking around in a trench coat and they’re not sure who he is,” said Lt. Thompson. As police viewed the footage, Thompson and Lt. Aldo Bonacchi both recognize Ray Newton. “Some of the video that we reviewed actually shows Mr. Newton coming out of and going into the residence, sometimes with some of the items that were stolen,” he added.
In addition to seeing Newton on video, crime scene technicians secured swabs from brickwork surrounding the window they believed the burglar entered the home. Those efforts proved fruitful – police got a positive DNA hit on those swabs. It was Ray Newton. Thompson said that the case went to trial and that Newton was found guilty. State prison records indicate that Newton was sentenced to 15 years[6]. At the time, District Attorney Greg Oakes said that Newton, was “…incapable of change,” and that “…for the safety of the community, he needs to be locked away for the remainder of his life.”[7]
…for the safety of the community, he needs to be locked away for the remainder of his life.
Pattern?
Lt. Thompson said there are other clues which lead them to believe that Marla’s apartment was being used while her body lay decomposing in her bedroom.
In the 2006 throat-slashing incident, police said that Newton stayed at the residence after the victim was taken to the hospital; but they also suspect that he may have been staying at Marla’s apartment after she died and before her body was found.
This pattern of staying where he was not supposed to be appears to go back several years. A news report from 1980 said that Newton, then 21, was discovered in an unpaid hotel room. He was reportedly found in the company of a 15-year-old who’d been reported missing. He was charged with theft of services and endangering the welfare of a child.[8]
In the burglary case of the National Guard member, Newton had allegedly sold or gave away some of the victim’s personal property. Marla’s brother, Marc, said that as he was cleaning up Marla’s apartment in the days following the discovery of her body, he noticed that some things appeared to be missing. “I didn’t find one speck of jewelry. And I mean, she had some of my grandmother’s and some of my mother’s jewelry, and stuff that she had bought. That, you might say, was a hobby of hers. She liked going and looking at jewelry and stuff,” said Marc.
Police Question Newton
Lt. Thompson said that Newton was in the county jail for the forgery of that money order that Marla Ware had reported stolen, as well as an unrelated vehicle theft. Lt. Thompson said that Newton was upset that he was being interviewed and was dismissive of the detectives. But when detectives floated the idea of a scenario of how Marla may have died and that Newton may have continued living there, Lt. Thompson said that Newton ‘did not outwardly deny it.’
It may seem beyond belief that someone could live in a closed-up apartment with a decomposing body lying on the floor of a bedroom. But police say that they have witnesses who told them they heard footsteps, a flushing toilet, and running water in the days which, according to Lt. Thompson, Marla was believed to have been dead. “The apartment itself was in stages of disarray, and, all accounts from witnesses are that Marla was very orderly and clean, she kept a very clean house.” Thompson said that it appeared a couch appeared to have been repositioned to watch a TV that had also been moved from another location. “I’m guessing that the TV itself may have been in Marla’s bedroom and he couldn’t stay in there any longer so he brought it out to the living room and moved the couch.”
The Man on the Stairs
As previously mentioned, on the evening of June 9th or 10th, 1998 a witness told police that he went to Marla’s apartment building to visit her. But when he got to the exterior door of her apartment, he encountered Ray Newton. Lt. Thompson described the witnesses’ account, saying, “Mr. Newton comes down the stairs. Mr. Newton has his hands in his pockets when he comes down, tells [witness] that Marla’s not feeling well, she doesn’t want any visitors, and we should leave.” Thompson said that the two men walked to the sidewalk where there was a concrete drop-off and both men jumped down. But the witness describes that Newton kept his hands in his pockets, rather than using them to protect his balance, described Lt. Thompson. When the two men went their separate ways, Newton did not shake the witness’s hand, said Thompson, something uncharacteristic of Newton’s normal behavior.
In addition to the neighbor’s report of noises coming from Marla’s apartment Thompson also said, “I believe there was one report of a neighbor who found a male either climbing up or coming off of the balcony of Marla’s apartment…” Who was the man on the stairs? Could it have been Ray Newton?
Wallet Found in the Couch
After police released the apartment back to the family, Marla’s brother made a discovery. Marc shared, “As I was cleaning out the apartment, in the couch under the cushion was a wallet.” Marc said that he carefully placed the wallet into a plastic bag and promptly took his find to police headquarters.
Lt. Thompson said that wallet belonged to a male friend of Marla’s who had last seen her about 6 months before she was last seen. Police said that receipts in the wallet confirmed the man’s version of events.
What about Frances Dann?
We’ve talked a lot about Ray Newton’s history. What about Frances Dann? He was one of the last known people to see Marla alive. Asked about the relationship between Francis Dann and Marla, her brother said, “If Marla needed some money or for something she’d always call him. He would come down, take her places, and they’d go and do things together…he was kind of a boyfriend, but it wasn’t (an) exclusive type deal.”
Lt. Thompson told APB Cold Case that Frances Dann was questioned by Oswego detectives on August 5th after the discovery of Marla’s body. According to police, Dann said that the last time he saw Marla was on June 4th; and while it is likely that police examined Dann’s story, it also appears that detectives had cause to focus on the Ray Newton theory. Perhaps the physical evidence will bring clarity to the picture…
Does the Pillow Hold the Answer?
Among the items of evidence that police have in the Marla Ware death investigation is a pillow. Lt. Thompson, pointing to the incident in which Newton allegedly smothered his mother with a pillow, believes it may be their best physical evidence in the case. “So that pillow has actually been sent off to the New York State lab to get it re-tested, especially with the theory that, if he grabbed onto it on both sides to smother her, there’s potential there could be some DNA evidence there.”
…if he grabbed onto it on both sides to smother her, there’s potential there could be some DNA evidence there.
The passage of more than 25 years can make it more difficult for detectives to get answers – memories fade, witnesses and family members move away, some have died. But one thing that has improved is DNA science. In the years following Marla’s death forensic technology has improved to the point where technicians can identify traces of DNA, something that was not possible on the same level in the year that Marla died.
Identifying DNA from crime scene samples such as in the case of the burglary of the National Guard member’s home in Oswego in 2020 are now routine, and that technology can also be used on evidence from old cases.
Police are awaiting the results of DNA testing on the pillow from Marla’s apartment.
Ray Newton
Newton remains incarcerated in a New York State prison. His current sentence expires in 2036, but he is eligible for conditional release in 2034.[9]
Lt. Thompson said that Newton has been in touch with Oswego Police in recent years. He and another investigator received cryptic letters from Newton which Thompson believes is Newton’s way of letting them know how much time he has left in prison.
Family Still Seeking Resolution
More than 25 years have passed since Marla died. Her brother, Marc, said that the family still wants answers and it would be a relief to get some resolution; and he fondly remembers how Marla would visit and play with his kids. “She was taken from us way too early. My kids loved her,” Marc said.
Police Tips Hotline
If you or anyone you know has information about the death of Marla Ware, call the Oswego Police Department Tips Line at 315-342-8131.
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[1] The Post Standard; Oswego Woman Suffered Mental, Drug Problems; 8/6/1998, p.5
[2] Post Standard; Oswego Woman Suffered Mental, Drug Problems; 8/6/1998, p. 5
[3] Syracuse Herald Journal; Scriba man admits assault that injured his girlfriend; 2/16/1994, p. 153
[4] Woman Cries in Court for Man Who Beat Her; The Post Standard; 4/28/1994, p. 25
[5] The Post-Standard; Man convicted in slashing of ex-girlfriend’s throat; 2/13/2007, p. 49
[6] New York State Dept. of Corrections and Community Supervision; Accessed 8/28/2024
[7] Press release; County of Oswego; Oswego County Jury Convicts Newton of Burglary in the Second Degree and Petit Larceny; undated; https://www.oswegocounty.com/news_detail_T17_R1320.php
[8] Syracuse Herald-Journal; Trespass nets four; May 28, 1980; p. 5
[9] New York State Department of Corrections and Community Supervision; Incarcerated lookup;