GENESEO, NY – An upstate New York man has been charged with murder after he tried to drop off his father's bullet-riddled body at a sheriff's office, authorities said.
Richard Fluegel Jr., 30, called 911 late Monday night and said he had to drop off a body at the Livingston County Sheriff's Office in Geneseo, Sheriff Thomas Dougherty said.
“As you can imagine, the call to dispatch that they wanted to drop off a deceased person is very unusual,” Dougherty said at a news conference Tuesday.
Officers met Fluegel in the parking lot and found the body of Richard Fluegel Sr., who had died of gunshot wounds, in his son's car, Dougherty said.
The elder Flugel, 60, was reported missing Sunday, the sheriff said.
Fluegel Jr. was initially arrested for tampering with evidence and later charged with murder and criminal use of a firearm. He pleaded not guilty at his arraignment late Tuesday and was held without bail. He is due back in court on December 16.
The investigation was ongoing and authorities did not immediately provide information about how and when they believe Fluegel killed his father.
No attorney for Fluegel was listed in court records, and prosecutors did not respond to questions about who represented Fluegel.
Dougherty said he wanted to reassure the public that Livingston County, in New York's Finger Lakes region, was safe.
“Nothing like that happens,” he said. “We don't have people coming by and saying that they have a body with them and would like to give it away. That’s not common.”
