TROY — A Troy man accused of killing his roommate, stealing his car and cutting off the victim’s thumb is pleading not guilty by reason of insanity.
Sean Higgins, 25, was indicted by a grand jury on charges of aggravated murder, abuse of a corpse, tampering with evidence, grand theft of a motor vehicle and receiving stolen property, according to court records.
He entered his plea Monday in Miami County Common Pleas Court, according to online court records.
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News Center 7 previously reported last month that Higgins pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity in Miami County Municipal Court. Higgins’ case was transferred to Common Pleas Court at the end of April, according to online court records.
Court records filed Monday show that a Common Pleas Court judge ordered an evaluation of Higgins by the Forensic Psychiatry Center for Western Ohio in Dayton.
Higgins was arrested by Troy Police on April 14 after police said he admitted to killing Easton Ho, 25, and dumping his body out of state, according to court records and Troy’s Police Chief. News Center 7 previously reported that police called the killing premeditated.
Ho’s body was recovered in Randolph County near the Greenville Creek in the area of State Route 227 and Greenville Pike on April 15, investigators said. It was the area Higgins told police he dumped it, according to Troy Police Chief Shawn McKinney.
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Investigators said Higgins cut “off the dead victim’s thumb and keeping it to access and use the victim’s cell phone” during the crimes. The victim’s cell phone ended up being recovered in a field in Troy.
Higgins is currently booked in the Miami County Jail where his bond was continued at $1.5 million.
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