Investigators said Reginald House had previously admitted to killing 44-year-old Philip Curtiss, setting his body on fire and burying the remains.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Almost four years after Philip Curtiss was reported missing in Jacksonville, authorities have secured a murder conviction in the case.
Following a two-day trial, a Duval County jury deliberated for just 15 minutes before finding 48-year-old Reginald House guilty of murdering Curtiss and abusing his remains.
House was scheduled to be sentenced Thursday, Oct. 8.
The case began as a missing-person investigation in November 2022, after Curtiss had gone unseen for several weeks and relatives grew concerned. Months later, the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office Cold Case Unit took over the investigation after detectives learned Curtiss may have been beaten to death and buried by House. The two men lived on the same Starratt Road property.
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According to the arrest report, House told police during a Nov. 3, 2023, interview that he confronted Curtiss at his home over allegations that Curtiss had stolen from him. House also confessed to killing him and burning his body.
Before his arrest, House led detectives to an empty lot near Elm Street in Jacksonville’s Brooklyn neighborhood, where investigators found Curtiss’ remains.
In an interview with First Coast News after House’s arrest, Sharon Fowler remembered her son-in-law as a generous man who “would’ve given you the shirt” off his back.
House is also facing a separate criminal case and was charged with two counts of attempted murder before his arrest in Curtiss’ death.