ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (AP) — A North Dakota man is charged with second-degree murder in the Oct. 10 decapitation killing of another man at the victim’s home on the Navajo Nation in northwestern New Mexico, authorities said.
A criminal complaint alleges Shilo Aaron Oldrock, 28, attacked and decapitated the victim with an ax and burned the victims’ head in a wood stove before fleeing.
During a search of the victim’s home after the killing was reported to tribal police, an ax was found next to the victim’s body and his charred head was found in the stove, an FBI agent said in an affidavit.
The affidavit identified the victim only by his initials, B.K., and referred to him as John Doe. He lived in Navajo, a rural community about 31 miles (49 kilometers) north of Gallup in McKinley County, the affidavit said.
According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for New Mexico, Oldrock is an enrolled member of the Navajo Nation and he lived in Fargo, North Dakota.
A lawyer appointed to represent Oldrock did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding the allegations against Oldrock.