Suspect "Had Relationship" with Young Gay Man Found in Dumpster

New developments into the death of Lashon Lee Douglas Jr, the 20-year-old gay Georgia man whose body was found in a rural dumpster. Authorities arrested 35-year-old Eric Riley, who charged with concealing the death and tampering with evidence. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation confirms to Project Q Atlanta the deceased and Riley "had a relationship."

According to Rodney Wall, special agent in charge of the GBI office in Columbus, [the] two men had contact the weekend prior to Douglas’ body being found March 18. "I am not going to comment on his lifestyle,"  Wall said Tuesday. "But they had a relationship and it was mutual. That is my understanding from everything we’ve learned."

Wall said investigators don’t yet know how Riley and Douglas met. "They hooked up one way or another. I don’t know the circumstances on how they met right now," Wall said.

Douglas’ body showed "no signs of a stabbing or shooting, but some bruises were visible around the face and neck." Autopsy and toxicology results are pending, but, homicide charges have not been filed. Yet. However the GBI confirms Riley remains the sole suspect. "I believe we have the sole person that was involved," Walls told the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer.

Atlanta-based Darian Aaron confirmed Douglas was gay and "also went by the name Arielle Redd. Douglas was laid to rest in Marietta, Georgia. Friends have created a Myspace page in his memory." Many of the well-wishers on the MySpace tribute are affiliated with the ballroom community.

There has been some speculation this was an online encounter. It will be worth seeing what "relationship" Lashon Lee Douglas had with Eric Riley that would warrant his body being discarded in a highway dumpster like trash.

Suspect, Gay Victim "Had Relationship" [Project Q ATL]

Some Background ...
Investigators Probe Death of Man Dumped [R20]

Comments

[THEGAYTEKEEPER]

okay that's a twist I wasn't expecting...

[Jamal]

R.I.P.

[Strong Island]

Wow. More death and more tragedy.

We need to love each other and take care of ourselves, black gay men.

Be careful and watch who you hookup with and where you go. On the real.

[Ravenback]

There are so many men out there who hate who they truly are. These guys can't stand the fact that they're gay, yet cannot ignore the very strong attraction they have for other guys. They bottle all of that pent-up frustration inside until it is released in an explosively volatile or deadly manner. Even though it is fiction, I remember the DL Chronicles story about the guy with a live-in boyfriend whose cousin came to visit him. The scene, in which the cousin told the boyfriend about how he hated the openly gay neighborhood guy who lived down the street because he reminded him of what was inside himself, comes to mind. All of this paranoid closeted DL behavior is not healthy mentally. And the only ones that end up getting hurt by them are those who interact with them sexually.

[Shane Moseley]

Ravenback, that is a great analogy.

I remember that episode and I will admit that reminded me of how I used to be.

Another young gay black man whose life was sadly taken from us ...

[TB]

What is the theory in this case?

And are we sure it was not a hate crime?

[Rod Mc]

TB, my instinct is this will not be a hate crime or random killing.

The suspect was well acquainted with Douglas and they were together the weekend before Douglas went missing. Doesn't sound like a hate crime to me, either a tryst, a robbery or some other foul play. -RM

[Kevjack]

This is so sad, but my gut told me those two knew each other before this happened.

This is a very disturbing trend of black gay men being killed by men they know/hook up with/meet randomly, etc. This has to be the third or fourth murder mentioned on this blog in the last six months. This is too much. I am outraged over this. Too many of us are going missing and/or ending up found slain in some dark alley. We have got to prevent this.

Please be very careful with men you meet and hook up with. You don't know them. They could be dangerous. They could rob you. They could attack you. They could rape you. They could kill you. Tell a friend where you are going and give them some info about who you are meeting and why. So many times people who prey on us use our silence and shame against us. We're easy targets because people believe that we don't fight back, we dobt want our sexuality made public, and that we live in shame. You would rather have your business in the street than your dead body, so tell a friend what you are up to and please be careful and take precautions.

[Tee]

So according to facebook, he was transgendered. It's scary out here!