Scammer
Banned
A man has been charged with first-degree murder in a case that came to light last month when body parts were found scattered across South Florida, police announced Wednesday afternoon.
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, police allege that Jamie Saffran, 51, dismembered the victim and then used the man's credit card to pay college tuition for Saffran's daughter and new tires for his Jeep.
The victim's identity has not been released because next of kin have not yet been notified. A police affidavit, the victim has been identified as a "white male" with a "Florida driver's license." He was killed between November 2 and November 5.
According to the Broward County Medical Examiners Office, the victim died from "blunt force trauma."
The police affidavit says the gruesome discoveries began in Fort Lauderdale on November 6, when police responded to a call about a suspicious container. Human legs and arms were found inside a bucket, poorly masked by concrete. Additional agencies became involved in the investigation as more body parts -- which included the victim's head and torso -- were located in similar containers in three counties, the affidavit says.
"As the multijurisdictional investigation progressed, further evidence led investigators to suspect Saffran's involvement in the homicide," Fort Lauderdale police said.
During a search at Saffran's home, authorities discovered a shovel covered with concrete and a sledgehammer "that presumptively tested for human blood," the affidavit says. They also found two bags of cement and several sharp tools, it says.
DNA testing conclusively linked the strewn body parts to the unidentified male victim, authorities say.
Saffran told detectives that he and the victim had been friends for several years and that they even shared a home mailing address, although the victim lately resided in the Dominican Republic. According to the police report, Saffran said the two last saw each other sometime around October 31.
The investigation is ongoing, police said.
