AKRON, Ohio (AP) — A man has been charged with aggravated murder in the case of three men who were bound and gagged and then shot in the head before their bodies were dumped in two places in Ohio.
Copley Township police said Elias Gudino, 58, is charged with one count of aggravated murder and one count of attempted aggravated murder with additional charges pending.
Police in nearby Akron said a passerby spotted two bodies in a wooded area near Interstate 77 at about 8:30 a.m. on Friday. Officers in Copley got a call about 20 minutes later reporting the body of a man in a ditch alongside a road about two miles (three kilometers) away from where the other two bodies were found.
Officials say the slayings are believed to be related and Copley and Akron detectives are investigating them together.
Copley Township police said they believe the men “had likely been kidnapped from outside this area” and brought into Summit County, and they were then shot “while they were bound and gagged” and the bodies dumped where they were found.
Investigators were trying to determine the reason for the kidnapping and are also trying to positively identify all of the victims. They said they believe there is no danger to the public at large.
Gudino was arrested Friday afternoon and his home was searched that night and early Saturday. Investigators haven't said what led them to Gudino or what was found in his home.
Summit County court records don't list an attorney for Gudino; listed numbers in his name weren't in service Sunday.
