Scott plea deal approved
Mar. 11—RUSHVILLE — A man arrested in late November of last year in conjunction with the death of a missing Arlington teen will be spending 57 years behind bars.
As the Daily News reported in late January of this year, Patrick Scott, 59, of Arlington, accepted a plea agreement which called for him to plead guilty to Murder (Count 1) and serve an executed sentence of 57 years. Other lesser charges were dismissed.
The Rush County Sheriff's Department Facebook page posted a release on Monday, March 11, indicating that terms of that plea agreement have been accepted.
The Daily News reported on Dec. 1, 2023, that human remains found earlier that week on a property in Arlington had been identified as those of missing teen Valerie Tindall, who was 17 at the time she went missing.
That story additionally reported that Rush County Coroner Brenda McMahan had positively identified the human remains located on Nov. 28, 2023, at 2366 N. Oak St., Arlington, as Tindall's. The teen was reported missing by her family in early June of last year.
Scott was initially charged with murder, obstruction of justice, and false informing to a law enforcement officer.
Scott appeared Thursday, Nov. 31, in Rush County Circuit Court for an initial hearing at which time he was ordered jailed without bond. A public defender was appointed to represent him.
Tindall told her parents on June 7 that she was going to work. She worked for Scott, who owned a lawn mowing business, according to court documents which detailed that Tindall met Scott and he drove her back to his home early that afternoon. Tindall later was reported missing.
On Oct. 11, cadaver-sniffing dogs indicated the smell of decomposition in a pond near Scott's property, but a search failed to turn up anything. One of the dog handlers told police that water is known to hold odor and that the smell could have come from runoff into the pond.
Police on Nov. 29 found a large dirt pile and debris on Scott's property. Using shovels, they dug up a rectangular box wrapped in tarp. Inside the box were human remains which included fingernails painted with orange polish, documents stated. Police said that a photo posted to social media on June 7 showed Tindall with orange-colored nails.
"This is not the outcome we had all hoped for, but I want to stress to the public that this case is far from over," Rush County Sheriff Allan Rice said shortly after Scott's arrest. "Justice will be sought."
Scott told investigators he strangled Tindall with his belt in the bedroom of his home when she tried to blackmail and seduce him, according to court documents.
