Levi Aron Under Suicide Watch After Charged with Leiby Kletzky Murder
Levi Aron, a Brooklyn man accused of kidnapping and killing an 8-year-old Leiby Kletzky who asked him for directions , was arraigned in a New York court on charges of murder and kidnapping in the first degree on Thursday. He was also remanded under suicide watch until a mental evaluation is completed, CNN reported.
Aron, 35, reportedly showed no emotion as he entered the court handcuffed. He did not enter a plea. Aron was to undergo a psychological evaluation after his lawyer told a judge that his client might be mentally ill.
He has indicated to me that he hears voices and has had some hallucinations, defense attorney Pierre Bazile said.
Aron's next court date is July 28. And Kings County District Attorney Charles J. Hynes said he would ask a grand jury for the maximum charges permitted by law for the vicious and callous murder and dismemberment of 8-year-old Leiby Kletzky.
On Wednesday, body parts of Kletzky were discovered in both the refrigerator of Aron and in a dumpster about 2 miles away from Aron's residence.
The boy's feet, along with a bloody cutting board and blood stains, were found in the refrigerator. Meanwhile, other parts of his body were in a suitcase in the dumpster, reported NY Daily News.
Kletzky went missing on Monday afternoon. He was on his way home (walking by himself) from summer camp for the first time and got lost. He then approached Aron, who had just made a payment to a dental office nearby, likely to ask for directions home.
Aron then convinced the boy to get in his 1990 Honda Accord, took the boy to his attic apartment, and ultimately killed him.
After the boy went missing on Monday, Aron was soon identified through the aid of a surveillance camera tape. When the police tracked him down and busted through his apartment on Wednesday, Aron confessed to the murder.
He directed the police to the boy's remains in the refrigerator and then pointed them to the dump. He explained that he killed the boy because he panicked when he found out that the police were searching for the boy.
Aside from the police, the entire tightly-knit Orthodox Jewish Community in Brooklyn, to which the boy's family belonged, conducted an extensive search for him.
It's unclear why Aron committed the kidnapping in the first place.
Not much is known about Levi Aron at this point. He is a stock clerk at the Empire State Supply Co. hardware store on McDonald Avenue in Kensington.
When he reported to work on Tuesday, he appeared fine, according to his co-worker, who spoke to CrownHeights.info.
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