Fort Payne man arrested on abuse of corpse

FORT PAYNE, Ala. (WDEF) — On Thursday, the DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office, along with the Powell Police Department and DeKalb Ambulance Service, responded to the 200 block of County Road 158 in Fyffe regarding two deceased females found inside a residence.

The DeKalb County Sheriff’s Office states that the DeKalb County Drug and Major Crimes Unit was notified and responded to the residence, where investigators processed the scene, interviewed neighbors and other witnesses, and identified Ruth Genett Rowland (79, of Fyffe) and Charlotte W. Harper (76, of Fyffe) as the deceased.

During the investigation, a search warrant in relation to this case was executed in the 1400 block of Forest Ave. in Fort Payne, where additional evidence was gathered.

Oliver Nick Harper (37, of Fort Payne) was arrested and charged with two counts of abuse of a corpse due to the actions taken by Harper in the days after the deceased died and prior to their discovery on December 4, 2025.

The Sheriff says the case is still active and additional charges may be pending.