The body of Christy Cook, reported missing out of Pickens County, was found by an unsuspecting Jefferson County homeowner Wednesday, March 15, 2017. Her boyfriend, Anthony Gene McClellan, was booked into the Jefferson County Jail on suspicion of capital murder.

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The boyfriend of a decomposing woman found by a man when he returned to his home after a 10-day trip is now charged with capital murder.

It is a bizarre story that began earlier this month and now has spanned at least three counties. It apparently began when the couple broke into a Rock Mountain Lakes home, and ended with the woman dead from two gunshot wounds on the floor in the bedroom of a man she didn't know. The suspect claims he accidentally shot her - twice.

Authorities Thursday identified the dead woman as Christy Lynn Kelly Cook, 39. Anthony Gene McClellan, 40, was booked into the Jefferson County Jail at 12:46 a.m. Thursday and formal charges were announced Friday.

Also Friday, sheriff's detectives found what is believed to be the weapon that was used in the fatal shooting. The gun was located in a creek near Fourth Avenue and Powder Plant Road in Bessemer.

Cook was last seen about 5 p.m. on Tuesday, March 7, according to family members. She was believed to be on her way to Tennessee, but never arrived there. She was driving a black 2005 GMC pickup and pulling a 1995 Excel Ski Boat on a twin axle trailer.

Her truck was found in a wooded area near Stephens Gap Road in the Keener community on Friday, March 10. The boat she was reportedly towing had not been located. At that time, authorities said, her male companion - McClellan - was found wandering disoriented near County Line Beverages on Highway 11 N in Attalla on Wednesday, March 8.

McClellan was taken to a hospital where he was treated and released into the custody of Pickens County, authorities said.

Cook's body was discovered just before 2 p.m. Wednesday, March 15, when a Jefferson County man returned from a business trip that started March 5, and called 911 after he found someone he believed was asleep. Once on the scene, deputies checked the home and found the woman - later identified as Cook - dead on the man's bedroom floor. The homeowner told deputies no one was supposed to be at the house, and he didn't know the woman.

The homeowner spoke on Thursday about the ordeal. "There was someone laying there, and I thought they were sleeping, maybe passed out on drugs or something,'' said the man, who asked that his name not be used. "I saw something laying on the floor. An article of clothing. I knew I didn't put it there. It was an interesting experience."

Chief Deputy Randy Christian on Friday said detectives contacted Pickens County authorities to gather more information about the victim and learned McClellan was in their office. They then traveled to Pickens County to question him.

During questioning, McClellan told different stories about what led to the Cook's death. "He claimed that the victim had driven them to the home and he had never been there before,'' Christian said. "They broke into the home and, while inside, he claimed that he accident shot the victim twice."

Detectives on Friday morning presented their evidence to the Jefferson County District Attorney's Office, which issued the warrant against McClellen. He is charged with capital murder during a first-degree burglary.

He is being held without bond in the Jefferson County Jail. He has multiple previous arrests in Pickens County for alcohol-related issues, but none for violent crimes.

"This has been an interesting case to say the least. I can't imagine how the homeowner feels but he has handled things remarkably given the circumstances,'' Christian said. "Our suspect's first story was a creative kidnapping story where he claimed a drug dealer shot the victim. When our detectives pointed out the holes in that story he decided to come up with an accidental shooting."

"Now, we have seen a lot of accidental shootings but this is the first one where the victim was accidentally shot twice,'' he said. "If he has any ounce of decency left he will at some point tell the truth about what happened and why and give closure to this poor girls family. They deserve that."