Florida Phone Call Leads To Edmond Homicide Investigation, Police Say

Calls from concerned family members led Edmond Police to a horrific scene.

A standoff near Santa Fe and Edmond Road quickly turned into a homicide investigation Wednesday morning.

Investigators said those calls came from another time zone.

Police said that a family member called them after they saw a Facebook post. That call sounded similar to other swatting calls they've gotten recently and first had to find out if the threat was even real to begin with.

That call came into Edmond Police dispatch from a Florida line, and the caller asked to do a welfare check on Bernard Caldwell and his family.  

The caller was Caldwell's cousin, who told police they just watched Caldwell on Facebook Live

"They were a little bit confused at what they just witnessed, but what they did know is that their relative, who was living here had killed his partner, and he had posted a video on social media," the Edmond Police Department Public Information Officer Emily Ward said.

Officers still didn't know if the calls were real but still went to this home.  

Caldwell didn't come to the door, but more 911 calls came in, one even from a Florida police officer who watched the video as well.

"Some of the credit goes to the family for being persistent and to keep calling and giving information as they received it. That really helped our officers realize that this is a real situation," Ward explained.

Edmond's Swat team and bomb squad joined the officers on Castle Rock, while people who live nearby, like Duane Burgess and his wife, sat inside their home as negotiations with Caldwell unfolded.

"Of course we were very concerned. figuring out which house it was and what was going on," Duane said.  

He added, "you can't be serious. It's the thing you hear about on the news but it's not your neighborhood."

Police used a robot to get inside the home and talk Caldwell into surrendering.  

That robot then found 48-year-old Demetria Jordan, Caldwells' partner, dead inside.  

Police have not said how she died or where in the house she was found.

Duane said if anything, he hopes the next person in need won't have to rely on a Florida call

"[We] Need to get to know our neighbors and hopefully head off these kinds of things. Become friends, find out who's got difficulties and try to intervene if we can," he said.

Caldwell was arrested on multiple complaints, including first-degree murder.