Man Held On Murder Charges After Allegedly Being Seen Wheeling Corpse On Staten Island
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- A man was held without bail Sunday on murder charges, after he was allegedly seen wheeling his wife's corpse around on a dolly through a Staten Island neighborhood.
Anthony Lopez, 31, appeared Sunday before Staten Island Supreme Court Judge William Garnett. The judge ordered Lopez held without bail on murder charges, and set a separate $1,000 bail on an open misdemeanor compliant of criminal mischief, according to the Staten Island District Attorney's office.
Lopez was located Saturday morning after police said they received a tip that he was in East Harlem.
Police said he was apprehended after a brief foot chase on 113th Street and First Avenue. He has been charged with second-degree murder and concealment of a human corpse.
Police said he had shaved his head. Charges against him are pending.
A manhunt for Lopez had been underway since Friday morning. Police said Lopez was spotted pulling his 26-year-old wife's badly beaten corpse wrapped in blankets on a rusty metal dolly, CBS2's Brian Conybeare reported.
Police said Lopez fled when an off-duty detective saw him wheeling his wife's body on Post Lane in Mariners Harbor and tried to question him. While detectives in hazmat suits worked the scene, heavily armed officers searched the area where Lopez allegedly dumped the body and rusty cart on a neighbor's lawn.
The woman has been identified as Aduba Obiamaka. The medical examiner will determine the exact cause of death.
Neighbors who were too afraid to talk on camera said Lopez is a known drug user with a violent temper.
"She would come outside and I would see her with a lot of bruises," one neighbor said. "He's a very well-known crackhead and drug user so when he used I feel like it really added to his aggression."
Police sources said Lopez has 52 prior arrests.
