According to police, 28-year old Joel Michael Guy Jr. has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder for "the gruesome deaths of his parents" over Thanksgiving break in Knoxville, Tennessee.
Guy spent Thanksgiving with his parents and three sisters, who left the home on Friday and said nothing seemed wrong or unusual. His mother's co-workers called the police when she didn't show up for work; it was then they found the bodies while checking on the residents Monday. Police believe Guy killed his parents sometime "between Friday, November 25 and mid-day Saturday, November 26." He arrived at their house on Wednesday and went back to Louisiana on Sunday, so he stayed with the remains for a considerable amount of time.
The Knox County Sheriff's Office said the parents, 61-year-old Joel Michael Sr. and 55-year-old Lisa Guy, "suffered vicious stab wounds as well as dismemberment." The Knoxville News Sentinel reports that the parents might've been tortured in addition to being stabbed multiple times with a knife.
There were signs of a struggle, and the parents' remains were scattered around in multiple rooms of the home. Guy put some of the remains in a home-made "acid based solution in an attempt to destroy evidence." The disturbing crime scene was so toxic that investigators had to use "specific bio-hazard equipment," including hazmat suits.
Guy was arrested Tuesday evening in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, where he lives. He withdrew from Louisiana State University last year, was unemployed and financially dependent on his parents. They had planned to tell him that they were cutting him off after Thanksgiving. It's unclear whether or not that played a role in the murders, but police are considering it as a possible motive. The son has refused to talk to police since his arrest in the murders, which cops have called "horrific," "disturbing," and "very gruesome."
Guy has no criminal record and police don't think he has any history of mental illness. For now, he remains in Baton Rouge where he'll having a hearing on Tuesday morning to decide whether he'll waive his right to an extradition hearing before being sent to Knoxville, where the murders occurred.
Source: complex.com
