Another Former Girlfriend Says She Was Once Held Hostage By Martin Melvin Jr., Man Suspected Of Killing Girlfriend And Hauling Body Parts On Bus
LOUISVILLE (CBS) -- Melvin Martin Jr. is suspected of murdering his girlfriend and hauling her body parts to the Chicago suburbs in a suitcase, and on Thursday, another former girlfriend said she was once held hostage by him.
"I immediately called my mom and I told her, and she started screaming like, 'That could have been you!' and, 'Are you kidding me?'" the girlfriend said.
She could not believe it when she saw the news this week. Martin, 30, is now accused of murdering another former girlfriend, Ladawndra Ellington, 31, in Louisville, Kentucky, and then hopping on a Greyhound bus where his family picked him up in Chicago and took him to his mother's home in Markham.
"I could believe him actually killing her. I can believe that part," the former girlfriend said. "But what he did to her and her body, it's just - he was sick. He's a sick person."
While it is disturbing enough that Martin is accused of traveling with body parts, the reason Martin told police he brought his Ellington's remains to Illinois are more shocking still.
"He indicated that, as grotesque as it might sound, that he still wanted to be with at least part of her," Markham police Chief Terry White said Wednesday.
Detectives believe Ellington was killed at least 30 days ago.
On Wednesday evening, pieces of the woman's body were in Illinois, while the other half was found in Kentucky. Investigators said Martin told them where to find the rest of his girlfriend's body.
Investigators discovered her torso in a park late Wednesday afternoon.
The investigation shows that after Martin committed the murder, he stuffed his girlfriend's head, lower torso, and organs into three bags and then boarded the bus, police said.
Martin's mother called 911 after discovering what was in one of the suitcases.
On Thursday night, Martin was at the Cook County Jail awaiting authorities from Kentucky to come pick him up.