A 35-year-old man beheaded his mother and kicked her head across the road, before jumping in front of a train in New York on Tuesday night (Wednesday morning Singapore time).
Derek Ward allegedly decapitated his 66-year-old mother, Patricia Ward at her apartment building in Long Island, and dragged her out into the street where he kicked her severed head, reported the New York Post.
Police said that her body was discovered outside the building at about 8pm on Tuesday, with her head 6m away across the road. The victim, a professor who taught language arts at Farmingdale State College, was wearing only a bra and a pair of pants.
Derek Ward, who was psychologically disturbed and lived with his mother, later killed himself by jumping in front of a Long Island Rail Road train. His body was found about 1.6km from the murder scene.
Detective Lieutenant John Azzata from Nassau County police told the New York Post that he had a psychiatric history dating back about 10 years. He also had a criminal record that included gun charges.
Neighbour Nick Gordon told the Daily News that there was also blood within the apartment building.
"When I came out the door, I saw the blood on the tile. It was all over, as if someone could've been pulling a body. You could see the smears going down the stairs," he said.
Some neighbours initially thought that the gruesome scene was hoax for Halloween, which falls on Friday.
