A man’s body was found headless and handless in the yard of a DC home.
Police identified 32-year-old Lavaughn Barnes as the suspect in the gruesome murder case.
Barnes was reportedly living in his sister’s basement in Brookland when Abdulio Arias-Lopez was killed and dismembered, as reported by LawandCrime.
According to the Metropolitan Police Department, the victim’s remains were found on February 3rd, but investigators believe the murder happened in November of 2022 based on what Barnes allegedly confessed.
When officers arrived at the scene, they confirmed that the remains were human and were taken for further examination. After gathering evidence, police determined that the death of Arias-Lopez was, in fact, a homicide. On Wednesday, Barnes turned himself in and was charged with first-degree murder while armed.
The remains were found in black drawstring trash bags with red pulls.
WUSA9 Reported that a witness had discovered the body in the 1300 block of Kearney Street while clearing the area of bamboo overgrowth.
A homicide detective found the body inside the bag, partially decomposed and decapitated. The victim appeared to be shot in the abdomen, and reports indicated that the victim was headless and handless.
The suspect is believed to have murdered the handyman while he was helping to paint a kitchen on November 4th, 2022.
NBC4 reported that two men had an altercation in the basement of a house. According to sources, the suspect used a taser to overpower the man, then allegedly beat him to death.
He then allegedly went to an Ace Hardware store to purchase an ax to cut up the victim’s remains. The magistrate judge stated that the killing seemed “incredibly random” and ordered that Barnes remain detained.