Police in New York arrested a 30-year-old Richard Fluegel Jr. after he drove to the sheriff’s office to turn in the body of his father, who was deceased.
Reportedly, the investigation began over the weekend in Irondequoit, New York, when police were notified that 60-year-old Richard Fluegel Sr. had not returned home on December 8th in Livingston County.
Richard Fluegel Sr. also failed to show up for a flight the next morning.
His vehicle was found in the parking lot of a grocery store early Monday morning in the town of Dansville.
On Monday, the city police and sheriff’s office began investigating where Richard Sr. could possibly be. It wasn’t until 11:30 p.m. that night that the county dispatcher received a call about a man in the parking lot of the sheriff’s office who wanted to turn in the dead body of Richard Fluegel Sr. The call was made by Richard Fluegel Jr.’s lawyer.
Officers then went out and were met by Richard Jr. and his lawyer. Police found Richard Sr. fatally shot in his son’s vehicle.
Reportedly, police said that the shooting happened when the father and son were in the town of Ossian.
Investigators believe that the son shot his father twice with a twelve-gauge shotgun on property in Ossian, where he was starting a legal marijuana business.
The sheriff’s office executed a search warrant there on Tuesday, and they found a weapon. It was said that Jr. wrapped his father’s body in a tarp and put him in his vehicle.
The police have not released a statement about the motive behind the shooting.
Richard Jr.’s attorney said that he was called just hours earlier by Richard Jr., who told him that he had a body in his car and needed counsel.
The attorney is reportedly not under investigation.
Richard Sr.’s friends said that he was a father of two who loved traveling and riding motorcycles. It was said that he was a great friend to all, and no one ever had anything negative to say about him.
Richard Jr. has now been charged with murder, tampering with evidence, and weapon charges.
He reportedly pleaded not guilty and is being held without bail. He has two prior felony convictions. Jr. is due back in court on Monday, December 16th.
During a news conference on Tuesday, Livingston County Sheriff Thomas J. Dougherty called the situation “very abnormal,” adding he’d never heard of something like this happening in his law enforcement career. He said he expects more charges to be brought forward.
“How did we end up in this place with a really unfortunate, tragic story?” Dougherty said. “You know, it’s one of those things that I can imagine doesn’t make a lot of sense to the family, it doesn’t make a lot of sense to us, and so that’s our job to determine what happened.”
He did not reveal additional details and said there was never a wider danger to the community. “This was an isolated incident,” he said.
