Youngstown, Ohio Police made a horrific discovery when they searched the residence of Arturo Novoa, a 31year-old man. The man, along with his alleged lover, was hiding a corpse in a freezer in the basement of their residence.
Who are the suspects?
Arturo Novoa was arrested by the police on a warrant for abuse of a corpse on July 29. The next day -- which was a Sunday – the police again made an arrest. They arrested a 34-year-old Katrina Layton. She is charged with the crime of abuse of a corpse as well as obstructing justice.
The police believe that the corpse is possibly of a female victim.
They are yet to determine how the victim died. The Youngstown police is investigating if the corpse matches the description of any missing person.
The officers believe that the crime took place in Youngstown and then the body was moved to the residence in Campbell, which belongs to none of the accused people. A friend of Novoa who wanted to stay anonymous was called for questioning during the investigation. This friend had apparently fixed the freezer in his basement after the suspect told him that he had no electricity. The man did not suspect anything as the freezer was sealed.
Who is the victim?
Shannon Graves was a 28-year-old resident of Youngstown who Novoa was dating and subsequently went missing.
The suspect claimed to Shannon’s Family And Friends that she broke up with him and moved out of town to be with some other man. What seemed unusual to the victim’s family and friends was that she left her car and her dog behind. This made them file a missing person report.
Arturo is accused of various felonies and was also convicted for keeping a gun when he was not allowed to.
He has been in and out of state penitentiary. His on-and-off girlfriend is also accused of the same crime. She was apparently the one who bought the freezer. There is another suspect in custody.
Arturo and Layton will be formally presented in court soon. According to Graves’ family and friends, she was a great human being who was always ready to lend a helping hand to whoever needed it.
Tests results confirm victim's identity
The results of the tests have confirmed that the body was Shannon. She was reported missing in February this year. However, the Ohio Missing General's website erroneously omitted listing her on its site until July. The authorities revealed that Layton shifted to Arturo's apartment soon after the victim went missing. Katrina also used the victim's credit cards and even took on her identity.
