Man arrested for death of missing Delaware teen Taylor Owens

Delaware State Police on Sunday made an arrest in connection with the death of missing Dover teen Taylor Owens, 19.

Investigators took into custody Owens’ former boyfriend, 21-year-old Tony Mozick Jr., of Leipsic, after residents around 5:40 p.m. Saturday found charred human remains in a wooded area along the 200 block of Denny Street.

The medical examiner’s office positively identified the remains as those of Owens.

After further investigation and interviews, detectives were allegedly able to connect Mozick to Owens’ death.

Police believe Mozick killed Owens on Aug. 31 during a physical domestic altercation in a residence the two shared on the 200 block of Denny Street.

Mozick then allegedly moved the teen’s body to the wooded area, where he tried to dispose of the remains by burning them.

Police had been searching for Owens since Wednesday, when family members contacted authorities and told them they hadn’t seen or heard from the teen since Aug. 31.

Her remains were on Saturday turned over to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner for an autopsy to determine the cause and manner of death.

Mozick was arrested Sunday morning and charged with first-degree murder and abuse of a corpse.

He was jailed at the James T. Vaughn Correctional Center without bond.

Owens’ and Mozick’s Facebook pages portray the duo as a happy couple, having met while attending Dover High School.

taylor owens tony mozick Mozick posted this photo of the couple on his Facebook page May 26.

Owens worked as a nurse’s assistant at the Delaware Institute of Pain Management, while Mozick was a volunteer firefighter.

The social media sites also showed hints of the pair’s troubled family backgrounds, as Mozick’s family was still reeling from the murder of his father at the age of 45.

Mozick Sr. was on Jan. 5 stabbed to death in his Leipsic home.

Delaware State Police soon arrested his daughter, Jennifer Barnes, 23, and Barnes’ boyfriend Gerard Schweiger, 24, claiming Schweiger stabbed Mozick to death during an argument.

Barnes and Schweiger then allegedly stuffed Mozick’s body into a 55-gallon plastic container and on Jan. 6 threw it off a bridge on Fast Landing Road and into the Leipsic River.

Mozick Jr. referenced the crime in a Facebook post on Jan. 16.

taylor owens

Owens also seemed to refer to the crime and ensuing trial in a Facebook post Aug. 29.

taylor owens

Mozick Jr. in older Facebook posts made some disturbing allusions: Following a narcotics bust last July in which he was arrested, along with his father and two other men, for allegedly growing marijuana at Mozick Sr.’s residence, Mozick Jr. said he suffered from “severe paranoia” but did not take medication.

taylor owens tony moziack jr facebook post

In another post two months earlier, Mozick Jr. seemed to hint at the fact that he’d committed violent crimes in the past, writing “I’ll just kill ya, I did it [before and] ain’t scared to do it again.”

taylor owens tony moziack jr facebook post

Owens’ last post came on Aug. 31, the day of her alleged murder.

taylor owens Taylor Owens’ last Facebook post came the day of her alleged murder.

Police said the investigation into Owens’ death is still ongoing as troopers continue to conduct interviews and gather evidence.

Anyone with information about the suspect or crime is asked to call 911, to contact the Homicide Unit at 302-741-2728, or to submit an anonymous tip by texting CRIMES (274637) with the keyword “DSP,” calling Delaware Crime Stoppers at 1-800-TIP-3333, by downloading the Delaware State Police Mobile Crime Tip App or by filling out this online form.