One man in Franklin County, Tennessee, is dead and another behind bars on a $500,000 bond after authorities discovered a buried body Tuesday.
Franklin County resident Hugo Cruz, 41, is charged with criminal homicide in the death of Salvador Ontiveros, whose age was not listed, according to a statement issued by Franklin County Sheriff's Office spokesman Sgt. Chris Guess. Guess said the investigation started with a report filed with the Winchester Police Department.
Winchester police took a report on a possible homicide outside the city limits that the sheriff's office began pursuing early Tuesday with city police assistance.
"Through the investigation, authorities were able to determine the location of the suspected homicide and also determine a suspect," Guess said in the statement. After investigators processed the crime scene they were able to locate the victim. At this point, Cruz was taken into custody and charged, Guess said.
Ontiveros' body had been buried, according to 12th Judicial District Attorney General Mike Taylor.
Cruz allegedly "hauled [Ontiveros' body] from where the killing took place and buried it on his father's property, and they found the body [Tuesday] night," Taylor said. He said Ontiveros, whose age wasn't immediately available, was "somewhat younger" than Cruz.
Taylor said Ontiveros' body has been sent for an autopsy.
Cruz faces an initial appearance in court on the homicide charge on Sept. 3, Guess said. It was unclear whether Cruz has an attorney.
Contact Ben Benton at bbenton@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6569. Follow him on Twitter @BenBenton or at www.facebook.com/benbenton1.