An upstate New York man was arrested for the brutal mutilation, dismemberment and killing of a man he allegedly kidnapped earlier this year, a report said.
Police say 21-year-old Thomas Bovaird shot Juan Jose Gotay, cut off his tongue, burned his ears and buttocks and cut up his eyes before he left him to die over the border in Pennsylvania, WETM-TV reported on Tuesday.
Bovaird and “unknown associates” had kidnapped Gotay in late January, according to a grand jury indictment of the Elmira resident obtained by the news station.
The indictment states that Bovaird used a “pointed instrument” on Gotay’s eyes and “caused injuries to his jaw, mouth, and teeth,” according to the report.
Bovaird is facing a slew of charges, including first-degree murder and kidnapping. It wasn’t clear what his relationship to the victim was, if any, or if there was a stated motive for the grisly crime.
In May, WETM-TV had reported New York State Police were investigating two homes on Patridge Street and West Avenue in Elmira, which is in Chemung County in New York’s Southern Tier.
That investigation, which appears to be related to Bovaird’s indictment, included neighbors saying they saw investigators digging in the backyard of the home on West Avenue. Cops took a bag from the home, according to the station.