NIAGARA FALLS, N.Y. -- A man from Ohio pleaded not guilty to felony charges after police say they found a woman they think was his girlfriend dead in the trunk of his car in Niagara Falls.
JeShawn Elliott was arraigned in Niagara Falls city court Thursday morning on charges of attempting to assault an officer and menacing with a deadly weapon.
Police say Elliott drove from Youngstown, Ohio to Niagara Falls, then called his brother to say he had stabbed his girlfriend, 28-year-old Anvia Mickens.
The brother alerted police. When officers arrived, they say Elliott threatened them with a knife.
Niagara Falls police found Mickens' body in the trunk of Elliott's car.
As for why Elliott was in Niagara Falls, detectives speculate he may have wanted to commit suicide at the Falls.
"We have nothing to indicate that that was the reason," said Capt. Kelly Rizzo, Niagara Falls Police chief of detectives. "In the conversations that we've had with people from Ohio there's no indication that he has any connections to Niagara Falls, no family, no friends. We don't have him in our computer system as ever recieving a parking ticket here. So, we really can't say why."
Niagara Falls police are holding off on charges for the homicide as they work with investigators in Ohio.