Florida Bodybuilder Killed His Ex-Wife And Burned Her Body In An Oil Drum In The Backyard, Cops Say

Police say a Florida bodybuilder burned his ex-wife's body in an oil drum after she went to get her things from his home, Radar has learned.

Ian Christopher Baunach, 43, a former Marine, is accused of killing his ex-wife and leaving her body in an oil drum in the backyard. On Oct. 10, Baunach pleaded not guilty to killing Katie Baunach, his ex-wife and the mother of his two children.

Ian Baunach was arrested and charged with domestic battery by strangulation in November 2021 before being released the same day on $25,000 bond. Then, in September of 2022, his wife got a restraining order on him after accusing him of abusing one of their children.

Katie Baunach was last seen Sept. 29, when she went to her ex-husband's home "to retrieve some of her personal items" while leaving her kids with a friend. The friend said she never returned.

Police received a call about the incident on Sept. 30 and went to Baunach's home in LaBelle, Florida, where her car was parked outside, and Ian Baunach was not home. The man refused to let officers in when they came back, so they got a search warrant so they could check out the property. At that time, her car was gone as well.

Investigators found evidence of a struggle and blood stains inside the home, which Baunach said were from groceries. During the search, officers found Katie Baunach's engagement and wedding ring inside a safe. According to police, they found several guns, including an AR-15 inside the man's home.

Police continued to search and eventually found human remains outside. According to court filings, officers "discovered the fragment of a human mandible with an intact tooth in a fresh burn pile, and discovered a blue fifty-gallon barrel near the burn pile which reeked of decaying flesh. Inside the blue fifty-gallon barrel, law enforcement discovered an additional human bone fragment. Law enforcement discovered other suspected human bone fragments in the area surrounding the burn pile."

Baunach told police he did not kill his wife and that she had disappeared. He did say the two had been in an argument and that he was angry about the domestic violence injunction she filed against him, however. Baunach told police he went to sleep, and in the morning she was gone.

Baunach faces could face the death penalty if prosecutors choose to seek his execution.