Suspect May Have Accidentally Taken Video of Fatal Beating

Donald Galleck of Maine allegedly recorded beating on his phone inadvertently
By Arden Dier,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 24, 2019 11:31 AM CST
Cops: Murder Suspect Accidentally Streamed Killing
Donald Galleck   (Bangor Police Department)

Donald Galleck pleaded not guilty to intentional murder and depraved indifference murder Tuesday in Bangor, Maine. Then came an unusual twist: An affidavit was unsealed, alleging the 29-year-old had in fact unintentionally broadcast the beating death of 40-year-old Jason Moody via Facebook. The musician died of "massive inflicted trauma to the brain" on Nov. 13, two days after police found him unconscious at a Bangor intersection, reports the Bangor Daily News. On Nov. 11, Galleck, of no fixed address, had been asked to leave Moody's apartment because of rowdy behavior, reports WCHS. Moody walked with him to another apartment where he hoped to stay, but no one was home, and Galleck eventually called a woman using the Facebook Messenger app, according to the affidavit.

The court document suggests Galleck sent the video request by accident as he meant to end the call, placing the phone in his shirt pocket with the camera facing outward, per the Washington Post. The woman described the camera activating and capturing an altercation between the two men. Galleck punched Moody repeatedly, "grabbed the victim by the throat and bashed his head off the ground seven times … then fled the scene and appeared to jump a fence," the document reads. A friend later turned over to police a bloody sweatshirt she said Galleck was wearing when he showed up at her home near the crime scene looking panicked, reports the Daily News. He's held without bail with a trial set for March 2020. He'll face unrelated charges, including for domestic violence assault, in April. (More murder stories.)

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