A man has reportedly been charged with second-degree murder after authorities said he gouged his neighbours eyes out in an argument about a rooster.
Richard Wayne Ellison, 47, of Rock, West Virginia, was arrested on Sunday on suspicion of killing his neighbour, according to a police statement obtained by the Bluefield Daily Telegraph.
Police were said to have found the victim, 72-year-old Benny Foutch, on his porch with blood “coming from his orbital sockets," according to the newspaper.
Detective-Corporal Matthew Horn of the Mercer County Sheriff’s Office told the newspaper that he saw feathers scattered about the scene.
“When looking at the victim, the gouging out of his eyes appeared to be his cause of death being no other serious injuries were observed,” Horn said, according to the newspaper.
However, the body will be sent to the State Police Medical Examiner’s Office for an autopsy.
Mr Ellison’s girlfriend reportedly told investigators that Mr Ellison was bothered by the noises that Foutch's rooster was making and that she heard angry yelling and a commotion.
Police said that they believe Ellison at some point killed the rooster before murdering Foutch, according to the Bluefield Daily Telegraph.
Ellison was arraigned by videoconference where a judge set bail at $200,000.
