A lawyer in the United States allegedly shot his 20-year-old son, burned his body and then called the police to report what he claimed was a “terrible accident”. according to PeopleMichael Howard, 68, of Houston, Texas, was arrested on Monday and charged with murder and tampering with evidence. His son, Mark Howard, was diagnosed with Down syndrome and was fired from his job. The father reportedly told police that he mistook his son for an “intruder on his property” and shot him.
Sabine County Investigator JP McDonough said the 68-year-old man showed officers his property when they arrived at the scene, the outlet reports. He provided them with the gun he allegedly used to shoot his son and then took them to a woodpile where the burnt body of his 20-year-old son was located.
Michael Howard “took the decedent’s body, placed it in a loading bucket on the front of a backhoe tractor, and drove it to a remote area on his property and placed the body on a pile of wood and other burnable material.” which was first set up and then, according to his words, his son was ‘cremated’ as he felt his son would have wanted,” the investigator said, adding that it appeared the crime scene to “water Was “washed” with a “hose”.
Howard says “the whole thing was a terrible accident,” JP McDonough alleged.
McDonough said, “This is a bizarre crime. Mr. Howard committed this act and then proceeded to burn the body and then clean up the crime scene, which as an investigator I would consider indicative of nefarious motives. ”
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Police said that the victim’s mother and his two siblings were not at home at the time of the incident.
Separately, the district attorney said his office is looking into possible additional charges, including desecration and abuse of a corpse, as well as other charges related to tampering with a crime scene.
Currently, the 68-year-old man is in custody. His bond has been set at $10 million per charge.