FBI ties NC man to disappearance of women from Charlotte and SC
The FBI is investigating whether a Rutherford County man is linked to the deaths of at least two people, including a Charlotte woman missing since 2017, according to an affidavit unsealed Tuesday.
In his sworn statement, FBI Special Agent William Gang identified the suspect as Daniel Printz of Bostic, a small town about 75 miles west of Charlotte, off U.S. 74 near Spindale.
Law enforcement agencies, who arrested Printz on related weapons and car theft charges in September, have been investigating him for at least six months in connection with the 2017 disappearance of Nancy Rego and the vanishing last August of 80-year-old Edna Suttles of Travelers Rest, S.C.
Neither woman has been found.
Printz was being held Tuesday in the Rutherford County jail.
The new 10-page FBI filing describes a macabre investigative trail that opened in the fall, crossed state lines, and was marked by unusual pieces of evidence — including a discarded yogurt cup and an assortment of the personal items belonging to one of the missing women found hidden in a bee box.
In an Oct. 13 interview with investigators in which he said he wanted to “purge himself” of his sins, Printz hinted at multiple killings, according to the FBI agent’s affidavit. He said he “hypothetically” helped a friend euthanize the family member, then apparently killed the friend when the friend had feelings of remorse and was going “to tell,” court records show.
He spoke of another friend who he tried to help but also ended up dying. Printz disposed of the body so he could collect the friend’s Social Security, the affidavit says. He also described being the target of a robbery attempt, which “did not turn out well for (the robber).”
According to the affidavit, Printz is a suspect — but has not been charged — in the disappearance of Suttles. Surveillance video from Aug. 27, the day Suttles vanished, placed her and Printz together outside a Food Lion in Travelers Rest.
In October, Suttles’ purse, car keys and other personal items were found hidden in a bee box on Printz’ property, the affidavit claims. So was an empty yogurt cup, which tests later revealed contained a trace mixture of a prescription pain killer, a muscle relaxant and an anti-anxiety drug.
During a search on Oct. 10, a police cadaver dog “produced a strong alert” around a tarp and trash bag recovered near the bee box, according to the affidavit.
When asked specifically about Suttles during his Oct. 13 interview, Printz said he wanted a lawyer with him before he would say anything more.
But he told his interrogators he could take them to “within three feet” of the missing woman, the affidavit says.
Missing since 2017
During a September search of Printz’s home as part of the Suttles’ investigation, detectives with the Greenville County (S.C.) Sheriff’s Office discovered the driver’s license and passport of Nancy Rego, who disappeared five years earlier.
According to the affidavit, Rego’s family said she had entered a relationship with Printz before vanishing in November 2017.
For a time, family members texted and emailed with a person who purported to be Rego but who refused to meet or speak with them, the affidavit claims.
After Printz’ arrest last year, Rego’s debit card was found in his wallet. Investigators say Printz told them he held Rego’s power of attorney.
.A subsequent search of Printz’ residence by the Rutherford County Sheriff’s Office found even more links to Rego, including bank statements, credit cards and a wallet belonging to her mother, court records show.
During the same search authorities also found a small black bag that held zip ties, a Taser and crushed pills in a small plastic bag labeled “Ativan,” a powerful anti-anxiety medication, the affidavit claims.
The status of the investigation is unclear. Reached by phone Tuesday night, Lia Bantavani, a spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Charlotte, said she could not comment on a pending case.
Charlotte FBI spokeswoman Shelley Lynch likewise declined comment, directing the Observer to public documents on file.
Gang’s affidavit, which was filed under seal in the federal courts of the Western District of North Carolina, was part of an FBI request last month for a warrant to search a piece of the property Printz owned on Kiser Road in Bostic. According to court filings, the warrant was returned on Feb. 28. No items were seized during the search, the warrant shows.
Printz’s wife has sold the land and moved to Michigan, the affidavit says.
A pack of yogurt
The opening of the affidavit reads like the screenplay for a scene in a Hitchcock thriller.
A week after Suttles’ disappearance in South Carolina, law enforcement officers found Suttles’ 2014 champagne-colored Jeep Grand Cherokee parked outside a Best Western in Travelers Rest. Investigators quickly pulled surveillance video from the hotel, the nearby Food Lion and an antique shop next to Suttles’ home.
According to the affidavit, at 9:38 a.m. on Aug. 27, Printz scanned his frequent shopper card at the Food Lion. His purchase: a pack of yogurt.
A minute later, Suttles parked her SUV next to Printz’ silver Chevrolet Cruze in front of the store. Printz walked out of the grocery with a shopping bag and gestured to Suttles, the affidavit claims. He retrieved a small bag from the Chevy then got into the front passenger seat of the SUV next to Suttles. They drove off.
Four hours later, Suttles’ Jeep left her house back toward the Food Lion. At 2:02 p.m., it pulled up in the store’s parking lot. This time, according to the affidavit, Printz was driving. He moved Suttles to his car, then drove her Jeep to the Best Western, where he was caught on camera wiping down the inside and outside of the vehicle.
At 2:14 p.m., he walked back to his car and drove off. By this time, according to the affidavit, Suttles appeared “motionless.”
This story was originally published March 16, 2022 at 5:00 AM with the headline "FBI ties NC man to disappearance of women from Charlotte and SC ."
