PITTSBURGH, Pa. — Pittsburgh police have charged a Georgia man in the death of his brother-in-law. He allegedly told investigators that he put the body in a duffel bag “so no one could see him dead.”
Channel 2’s sister station WPXI obtained a copy of the criminal compliant filed against Steven Thomas, of Statesboro, Georgia, in the death of Vaughan Leroy.
Pittsburgh police found Leroy’s body underneath a tractor-trailer behind a Shop ‘n Save grocery store on Monday. The medical examiner ruled Leroy died from blunt force trauma to his head.
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Investigators went to Leroy’s house and found Thomas, who said he hadn’t seen his brother-in-law since Friday. Police took Thomas to headquarters for additional questioning.
The criminal complaint states Thomas admitted there was an argument between him and Leroy Friday afternoon. Thomas said he pushed his brother-in-law, who hit a wall and fell to the ground.
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Thomas told officers that Leroy wasn’t breathing and bleeding from his head, according to the criminal complaint. He told investigators he “got scared” and put the victim’s body in a duffel bag so “no one could see him dead.”
The criminal complaint accuses Thomas of then putting Leroy’s body in the back of a family SUV and driving to the Shop ‘n Save where his body was later found.
Thomas faces multiple charges, criminal homicide, abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence, WPXI reports.
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