Inset: Markus Yeanay (Columbus Division of Police). Background: The area in Ohio where Yeanay allegedly killed his neighbor (Google Maps).
A 28-year-old Ohio man is accused of killing his neighbor, allegedly beating the 39-year-old man to death before wrapping the body in a rug and burying it under a pile of mulch in his yard.
Markus Say Yeanay was taken into custody Tuesday and charged with one count each of murder and tampering with evidence in the slaying of 39-year-old Xavier Reynolds, court records show.
According to an incident report, the investigation began just before 10 p.m. Monday when Columbus Division of Police officers were dispatched to the 2400 block of Brocton Court for an unknown complaint. Upon arrival, first responders located the body of an adult male, later identified as Reynolds, who showed signs of suffering from "homicidal violence." He was pronounced dead at the scene.
A subsequent autopsy determined that Reynolds' cause of death was blunt force trauma to the head, local CBS affiliate WBNS reported.
A probable cause affidavit obtained by local ABC affiliate WSYX provided additional details about the circumstances of Yeanay's arrest.
According to the report, Yeanay's father placed the initial call to 911, telling the emergency dispatcher his son was acting "weird," and that he believed the 28-year-old had killed someone and hidden their body on the side of the house.
Responding officers discovered Reynolds' body wrapped in a rug and covered with a tarp that had been topped with mulch in an attempt to conceal the remains.
Speaking to investigators, Yeanay's father said he found the body on the side of the house and confronted his son about it. In response, Yeanay reportedly began crying and fled the scene on foot. He was tracked down and arrested by a SWAT team the following morning.
Inside the residence, detectives discovered a "large amount of blood" and later recovered clothing and potential weapons from nearby trash cans, the affidavit said.
Yeanay's father reportedly told investigators that his son has struggled with "anger issues" in the past.
Other residents in the Brittany Hills neighborhood expressed shock at the violence, noting that the area is typically quiet and close-knit.
"This was a real eye-opener because nothing ever happens in our neighborhood," resident Zamya Adams told WSYX. "Everybody knows everybody. We've been checking on our elderly people and making sure it's not their house that has been harmed."
This is not the first time Yeanay has been charged in connection with a homicide. Indiana court records show that he previously served nine years in prison after being found guilty of killing his uncle in 2016.
Yeanay is currently being held at the James A. Karnes Correctional Center. A Franklin County Municipal Court judge on Wednesday ordered him to remain in detention on $1 million bond.