An Urbana man was indicted Monday on six counts including murder, accused of killing his mother in the home where they both lived.
Robert James “Jamie” Stevenson, age 29, was taken into police custody at his 662 Lionel Drive residence on Friday, Jan. 3, accused of killing Pamela K. Combs, age 66. The home Stevenson and his mother reportedly shared is in a subdivision in the northwest portion of Urbana, just off Railroad Street.
On Monday, a Champaign County grand jury returned indictments against Stevenson for aggravated murder, murder, felonious assault, tampering with evidence, gross abuse of a corpse and aggravated menacing. Stevenson’s arraignment was scheduled for Tuesday morning in Champaign County Common Pleas Court after a previously-scheduled arraignment on Monday morning in Champaign County Municipal Court was canceled as Stevenson’s case was turned over to the grand jury.
The aggravated murder indictment alleges Stevenson “did purposely, and with prior calculation and design, cause the death of Pamela Kay Combs” on or about Jan. 3, 2020.
The aggravated menacing charge alleges Stevenson threatened another woman and her property on or about Jan. 3. The Daily Citizen is choosing not to name this alleged victim.
The Champaign County coroner, Urbana Police Division, Champaign County prosecutor and the state Bureau of Criminal Investigation (BCI) all reported to the scene and spent Friday afternoon and evening on the case. Information about the investigation and the arrest was released by the Urbana Police Division late Friday night.
Details of the killing are not being released to the public and police are not addressing any motive at this time. Urbana police had originally gone to the home just after noon on Friday on a welfare check of a resident there when they found Combs deceased at the scene and also found Stevenson in the residence.
According to the UPD press release, Combs’ body was transported to the Montgomery County Coroner’s Office for a forensic autopsy.
Stevenson was transported to the Tri-County Regional Jail in Mechanicsburg and held on $500,000 cash-only bond, according to the UPD press release. According to the jail’s website, he was arrested at 8:04 p.m., Jan. 3 by Urbana police and booked into the jail at 2:54 a.m. Jan. 4. The jail website lists him as 6-foot-3 and weighing 260 pounds. Prior arrests noted in the Miami Valley Jails system include obstructing official business and resisting arrest in Montgomery County, both misdemeanors, in 2014. Those charges were cleared and he was released by the court at that time.
According to the UPD press release issued Friday night, additional charges may be forthcoming in the case in the days ahead, but the release did not elaborate.
Services for Combs are pending at Vernon Funeral Home.
