Family hires private investigator to solve island death

EAGLE POINT, Ore. — When Debinee MacPherson-Udall first heard her brother, Casey Pomeroy, died in a terrible accident in December of 2018… she couldn’t shake the feeling something wasn’t right.

“The medical professional we had read the death certificate told us… it goes along the lines that he was poisoned,” said MacPherson-Udall.

Debanee says her sister in law told them two couples were visiting them on the island to ring in 2019.

When they got back to the apartment, Pomeroy and his friend, Caleb, started having seizures.

“The friend had passed away and then my brother apparently passed away at the hospital,” she said.

But Caleb’s death certificate shows something very different.

“Asphyxiation, strangulation, both ligature and manual, multiple blunt force traumas, and seizures,” she said.

The inconsistencies in the story along with the more sinister possibility the two men were murdered are what drew private investigator, T.J. Ward, to the case.

“Something is totally wrong,” he said. “What they’re saying happened and what transpired.”

Ward has worked on a number of high profile cases including the disappearance of Natalee Holloway from Aruba in 2005.

He knows all too well how difficult it is to investigate a tragedy abroad.

“These kids and these young adults think everything is the same that they can do the same things here they can do over there which is totally wrong,” he said.

Ward says he, like Debanee, is struggling to put the pieces together and accessing information has been difficult.

“It’s not like it is here in the United States,” he said.

The next step, he says, is for the court to hold an inquest.

“There are four other witnesses in this case. They’ve been requested to return to the island which I doubt very seriously is going to happen,” Ward said.

Without an inquest and the testimonies of those involved, Ward says the road ahead is unclear.

But one thing’s certain, the family will continue to fight to keep the case alive and get justice for Casey.

“They know that we are on to the truth. That we’re uncovering what’s happening,” said MacPherson-Udall.

NBC5 News reached out to the Royal Anguilla Police Force to confirm whether the inquest has taken place and whether they have any comment on the case.

We have not heard anything back.

The family also tells us they’ve hired an attorney on the island.

The attorney says it’s uncommon to have an inquest if there is evidence of unnatural death or possible homicide. For that reason, he says he’s fighting to get a criminal investigation underway.

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