FORT PIERCE, FLORIDA — The Pompano Beach truck driver who was first taken into custody after deputies found blood inside and outside his semi-truck near a Pilot Truck Stop off South Rock Road is now accused of killing his cousin and hiding the victim’s body inside the tractor-trailer, according to the St. Lucie County Sheriff’s Office.

Sheriff Richard Del Toro said during a 3 p.m. news conference Tuesday that the suspect, Olson Jean, had been traveling from Georgia to Florida with the victim, Wendy Moncion, 32, who investigators say was later found dead in the bed/sleeper area of the truck with a single gunshot wound to the back of the head. Del Toro said Jean’s wife told investigators Jean had been struggling with mental health issues and had allegedly been acting erratically.

Investigators said it remains unclear exactly when Moncion was killed, but deputies believe it happened sometime after Moncion’s family last heard from him on Thursday, Jan. 15, around 6:40 p.m.

The case began unfolding the night of Jan. 15, when deputies responded to a call about a suspicious person behind the Pilot Truck Stop near South Rock Road. Del Toro said the caller reported a man lying on the ground and “rolling around” while behaving erratically.

Deputies said Jean was found walking along South Rock Road near his semi-truck, which had left the roadway and ended up in a ditch. During that initial encounter, investigators reported noticing blood inside the cab near the passenger side and blood on the exterior passenger-side area. Jean was initially arrested and charged with resisting an officer without violence, and Del Toro said Jean gave inconsistent statements during the encounter.

On Jan. 16, deputies executed a search warrant on the tractor-trailer and found Moncion deceased in the sleeper compartment. Del Toro said the body was located underneath the bed in the sleeper area.

Investigators also recovered a Palmetto State Armory PA-15 rifle, a Springfield Hellcat handgun, and magazines matching the handgun. Del Toro said the firearms and magazines were found near a canal and appeared to have been intentionally placed there.

On Saturday, Jan. 17, detectives arrested Jean and charged him with first-degree murder with a firearm, tampering with evidence, and obstruction of justice without violence, officials said.

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