GARY, Ind. (AP) — A body found in a burning van in Gary has been identified as that of a man acquitted of murder charges in February.
The Lake County coroner said Friday that the body discovered early Thursday in a van found burning inside a Gary garage is that of 24-year-old Jerode Cursey.
The (Merrillville) Post-Tribune reports police said Cursey had been shot in the head and the van fire was intentionally set. Police say the van was registered in Illinois and belonged to one of Cursey’s friends.
A Lake County jury acquitted Cursey on Feb. 20 in the fatal September 2013 shooting of 39-year-old of Dewayne Young, also of Gary.
Investigators say they don’t believe that trial’s outcome is directly related to Cursey’s homicide, but the investigation is ongoing.