Terry Grant, 56, claimed his dirty truck and an uneven road may have prevented him from noticing he killed his wife. Forensic evidence told a different story.
An Oklahoma man is behind bars on a manslaughter charge after his wife was found dead in their private driveway — and his explanation for what happened is raising eyebrows.
Terry Grant, 56, of Miami, Oklahoma, has been charged with one count of manslaughter in the death of his wife, Cassandra Grant, 55, according to the Ottawa County District Attorney’s Office.
When investigators pressed him about the incident, Terry allegedly told them that if he did run over Cassandra, he “might not have known it” — pointing to the condition of his vehicle and the bumpy road as possible explanations.
“These clean areas stood out — the general condition of the F-250 was dirty and dusty to the touch.”
— Investigator affidavit on Terry Grant’s truck
How investigators found Cassandra
On a Monday morning, Terry called 911 to report finding his wife “deceased in the roadway” on their private drive off East 111 Road. Sheriff’s deputies arrived and confirmed she had been run over. A dark-colored Ford F-250 was parked right next to her body.
Terry told authorities he had left the previous day to retrieve Cassandra’s phone from a nearby Walmart, returned home around 6 p.m., and stayed inside all night — saying he had no idea where his wife was before he found her the next morning.
Key evidence against Terry Grant
- Human hair found on the left rear and front right tires of his F-250
- Clumps of hair torn from Cassandra’s head found next to her body
- Suspiciously clean patches on the truck’s undercarriage, despite the vehicle being dirty overall
- City camera footage placed Grant’s truck 10 miles from home at 5:52 p.m. the night of the death
- Surveillance showed Grant at a local Mexican restaurant where he allegedly consumed two margaritas and two tequila shots
A neighbor’s account
A neighbor told investigators he last saw Cassandra around 5 p.m. the evening before her body was found. She came to his door asking for a ride and appeared intoxicated — something he said was not unusual. She left on foot, headed back toward the Grants’ property.
The neighbor also noted the road is a dead-end private drive, and that aside from himself and Terry, virtually no one else uses it. He confirmed he had not left his property since several days before Cassandra was found.
What the truck revealed
Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation agents closely examined the underside of Terry’s F-250. While the truck was covered in dirt and dust, several sections on the undercarriage appeared conspicuously clean — a detail investigators flagged as significant in the arrest affidavit.
Combined with the hair evidence and the timeline reconstructed from city cameras and restaurant receipts, authorities concluded there was enough evidence to charge Grant.
Arrest and charges
A $100,000 arrest warrant was issued on a Tuesday. Grant turned himself in to Ottawa County deputies the following Wednesday morning, jail records confirmed. He faces one count of first-degree manslaughter.
The case remains under active investigation by the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office and the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation.
