30 year old Colby Hunter Tatom has been sentenced to 20 years in prison for his connection with the 2021 disappearance of Cristi Ruso.
Ruso was last seen being dropped off about 200 feet away from the residence she previously visited on County Road 777 on October 25, 2021.
In December of 2023, a grand jury indicted Tatom for murder, and a warrant was issued for his arrest. Officials say evidence shows Tatom murdered Cristi and disposed of her body.
Tatom pleaded guilty to tampering with a human corpse in connection with the death of Ruso. Her remains have never been found.
During the court hearing this morning, Tatom admitted to murdering Ruso, saying that “he burned her body, then dumped her into the Neches River.”
The Disappearance of Cristi Ruso
Cristi Lynn Ruso was born on January 19, 1990. Ruso was living in Buna, Texas at the time of her disappearance. She is single and is the mother of two children.
Disappearance
On October 20, 2021, Cristi Ruso was released in the morning from Jasper County jail. She later received multiple rides to and from Buna and Silsbee, including Garden Inn & Suites, a motel on Highway 96 in Silsbee, Texas.
On October 21, 2021, Ruso was last seen by her aunt when she was dropped off around 4:00 pm at an acquaintance’s residence in the 1800 block of County Road 777, about 1.5 miles away from Business Highway 96 in Buna.
Ruso was captured on surveillance camera with a group of friends at a Dollar Tree store in Evadale, about a ten minute drive from Buna on October 23, 2021.
On October 25, 2021, Ruso was last seen being dropped off about 200 feet away from the residence she previously visited on County Road 777. Cristi Lynn Ruso hasn’t been seen or heard from since.
Investigation
On December 18, 2021, two soaking wet black trash bags, which contained some of Ruso’s clothing and personal belongings, were found abandoned by a driver on County Road 721 off of Highway 96, about four miles south of Buna, Texas.
One arrest was made during the first search at the County Road property where Ruso was last seen, but authorities say the charges were unrelated to her disappearance.
On February 23, 2023, authorities executed a search warrant on the property located in the 1800 block of County Road in Buna, Texas where Ruso was last seen.
On March 1, 2023, new developments stemming from the first search warrant led authorities to execute a second search warrant on a neighboring property in the 1900 block of County Road 777 in Buna, Texas.
DNA samples recovered from the flooring, walls, and ceiling from the 1800 block of County Road property were sent off to the DPS crime lab in Houston to be analyzed.
Arrest Made in Cristi Ruso Case
On January 4, 2023, 29 year old Colby Tatom was arrested in connection with Cristi Ruso’s disappearance. He is being held on a $1 million bond.
A grand jury indicted Tatom for murder in December, and a warrant was issued for his arrest. Officials say evidence shows Tatom murdered Cristi and disposed of her body.
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