Man cuts off murder victim's thumb to use phone

A man from the United States is accused of cutting the finger of his murder victim just so he could use his phone.

The 25-year-old suspect Sean Christopher Higgins is accused of the homicide of Easton Ho along with abusing the dead body, tampering with the evidence, and stealing and receiving stolen property.

The report stated that Easton Ho’s other roommate told the police that the victim was missing. His vehicle, mattress and a suitcase were not found in the apartment but his glasses and shoes were there.

A roommate told the police about the removal of the trash.

Police, during the investigation, smelt bleach and saw its bottles inside the recycling bin. There was blood on the floor as well.

Troy Police Chief Shawn McKinney said that they found some bizarre text messages sent through the victim’s phone the day he did not come to work.

“Roommates of . . . Ho reported that he had sent strange texts to them at 2:45 a.m. and failed to show up at work that morning in Miamisburg,” he said as quoted in the report. This led to Sean Christopher Higgins becoming the prime suspect.

The victim’s girlfriend, whose identity was kept secret, received a message claiming Ho saying he was found an old enemy he would kill. She said she was aware of him already struggling with PTSD and Autism.

The investigation continued and the police were on the lookout for Easton Ho’s vehicle. After it was tracked down, they found blood inside.

“At some point, law enforcement interviewed Higgins, who admitted to murdering Ho at the apartment and led to key pieces of evidence being recovered,” McKinney said.

There are charges of Sean Christopher Higgins of cutting off “the dead victim’s thumb and keeping it to access and use the victim’s cell phone,” the records show.

Easton Ho’s body was recovered from Indiana. The accused pleaded guilty and is in jail on $1.5 million bail.