Five people in New York state have been charged with torture murder of. a transgender Minnesota man who disappeared earlier this month.
The body of 24-year-old Sam Nordquist was found dumped in a field after he was reported missing on February 9, The Associated Press reported. New York State Police Major Kevin Sucher said what happened to Nordquist was “beyond depraved” and that it was “by far the worst” investigation he’d ever been a part of.
“No human being should have to endure what Sam endured,” Sucher said.
The five people arrested, all New York residents, were identified as Precious Arzuaga, 38; Patrick Goodwin, 30; Kyle Sage, 33; Jennifer Quijano, 30; and Emily Motyka, 19. They have all been charged with second degree murder.
Investigators say Nordquist came to New York from Minnesota in September, was last in contact with loved ones in his home state in late January, and was last seen earlier in February, WHAM reported.
Police said the five suspects are charged with violently torturing Nordquist for more than a month before killing him.
A criminal complaint says the suspects sexually assaulted Nordquist with a table leg and broomsticks and beat him with sticks, dog toys, ropes, and belts.
The five were arrested after police conducted a search of a room at Patty’s Lodge motel in Canandaigua, the last place Nordquist was known to be staying.
State Police Capt. Kelly Swift said detectives had not decided whether to charge the suspects with a hate crime, saying the investigation was still ongoing. She said investigators had unveiled a “deeply disturbing pattern of abuse” and said it was “one of the most horrific crimes” she has ever seen.
The suspects are being held without bond.
