Authorities in northern Michigan say a young woman’s disappearance — and the grisly discovery that followed — unraveled into one of the most disturbing family violence cases the region has ever seen.
According to the New York Post, newly filed court documents outline chilling allegations against the mother and stepfather of 22-year-old Rebecca Park, whose body was discovered Nov. 25 in the Manistee National Forest.
Park had been missing for nearly three weeks and was just days away from giving birth.
Prosecutors say the young mother’s own parents, Cortney and Bradly Bartholomew, carried out a brutal attack in the woods after luring her away on Nov. 3. Investigators allege the couple stabbed her, cut her unborn child from her womb, and left her body hidden beneath leaves.
According to the affidavit, Cortney admitted to investigators that she attempted to tie off the umbilical cord after removing the baby. Bradly then allegedly slit Park’s throat while she was still conscious.
The documents also claim Cortney told investigators that Bradly — her husband and Park’s stepfather — was the biological father of the unborn child. “Brad said it was his,” she allegedly said during her interview with detectives.
Investigators say Cortney told them Bradly had researched C-sections and had openly discussed taking the baby from Park. The affidavit further states that the child never took a breath and that the couple placed the infant in a blue cooler, then a trash bag, and eventually into a garbage bin.
Park’s sister, 21-year-old Kimberly Park, was arrested the day after the body was found. She faces charges including tampering with evidence, lying to police during a violent-crime investigation, and filing a false felony report. Investigators say she misled officers by claiming Bradly struck Rebecca and caused a seizure before removing her body.
Further complicating the case, documents reveal that Bradly told authorities he was on a sex-offender registry. Additional records show he previously served a 180-day sentence related to a violation of that status.
On the same day Rebecca’s remains were located, her fiancé, 43-year-old Richard Falor, was arrested in an unrelated case and charged with distributing methamphetamine. He pleaded not guilty on Dec. 2.
Cortney and Bradly Bartholomew are now charged with a long list of offenses, including first-degree premeditated murder, felony murder, torture, conspiracy, unlawful imprisonment, and assault of a pregnant woman with intent to cause stillbirth. Both are being held without bond as investigators continue to sort through the layers of a case that has stunned the community.
For now, the quiet region surrounding the Manistee forest is left grappling with the unthinkable — a young woman and her unborn child slain, and nearly every person closest to her facing criminal accusations.
