A man has been taken into custody in connection to the death of Orsolya Gaal, a Queens, New York City mother whose body was found in a bloody duffle bag on Saturday morning in a park.
David Bonola, 44, also of Queens, was charged with murder, criminal tampering, and criminal possession of a weapon on Thursday, ABC7 New York reported.
David Bonola and Orsolya Gaal Had Previously Had a Romantic Affair and He Had Worked as a Handyman for Her as Well.
Authorities have not yet stated if Bonola had entered a plea following the arrest or if he has retained an attorney.
Bonola, who works as a handyman, was sought by police immediately after the discovery of Gaal’s body for questioning. Bonola and Gaal at one time had a romantic relationship, and it’s likely he knew where the family had hidden a spare key to their Forest Hills residence, an NYPD source revealed to People.
The crime was uncovered around 8:00 AM on Saturday when a man walking his dog saw blood on the grass next to a suspicious-looking duffle bag near Metropolitan Ave. and Jackie Robinson Parkway in Forest Hills, Queens.
Authorities identified the body in the bag as Gaal, 51, and she had been stabbed more than 50 times, the source also shared with the outlet. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
A literal trail of blood on the sidewalk led investigators down nine blocks all the way to Gaal’s home on Juno street, authorities explained.
Gaal was a stay-at-home mother who had two children aged 17 and 13. She lived at the residence with her two kids and her husband.
Surveillance footage appeared to show a person dragging the duffle bag down the sidewalk just hours before her body was found.
Gaal’s husband and one of her two sons were reportedly away for the weekend at the time of the murder. Gaal’s youngest son was at home, but investigators do not believe he had any connection to the killing.
As Mamas Uncut reported, Gaal’s husband said he received a terrifying text message not long after his wife’s body was discovered.
“Your whole family is next,” the text reportedly said. The suspect also accused Gaal of sending him to jail years ago before threatening their lives should they go to the police again.
RELATED: Husband Receives Terrifying Text After His Wife Is Found Dead
People‘s police source told the outlet that it is believed that Gaal knew her killer. They also said that Gaal spoke with her son before leaving Friday night, telling him that she was going to see a show in Manhattan at Lincoln Center.
It’s unclear if Gaal ever left Queens as she was later spotted in a bar there.
“What a tragedy, just for everybody involved,” John Blankson, a neighbor to the family said, NBC New York reports. “You can’t write this off. I think everyone’s trying to figure out what happened. How did this happen? Why did this happen?”
While we may never get all the answers to Mr. Blankson’s questions, we are hopeful that detectives are putting the pieces of this puzzle together.
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