Chad Henthorn trial: Victim in torture case to be state witness Friday
The victim in a torture case is scheduled to take the witness stand Friday morning.
He is expected to be the final witness for the state in the trial of Chad Henthorn, 49, who is charged with nine counts, including attempted murder, two counts of kidnapping, four counts of felonious assault and two counts of tampering with evidence.
While Henthorn did not take part in the brutal assault that left the victim with a ruptured spleen, a ruptured liver, along with extensive injuries to his skull and back, the state alleges he closed a door to prevent the victim from leaving and later destroyed the man's cellphone.
Robert Virgili, the actual attacker, was sentenced April 29 to 26 years in prison after previously pleading guilty to 10 counts, including attempted murder, for the May 30 attack in a garage in the 1200 block of Walker St.
Virgili beat the man with a crowbar and a heavy chain. He also tried to start a chainsaw.
Mansfield police Detective Korey Kaufman, the lead investigator in the case, completed lengthy testimony Thursday afternoon in Richland County Common Pleas Court.
On cross-examination, Kaufman said Virgili was apprehended a couple of months after the incident in Georgia, near the Florida state line.
Virgili had contacted the victim through Facebook with the offer of possible work.
The detective said he could not get a statement from the victim when he was initially admitted to the hospital, though Kaufman did interview the man later.
Kaufman testified that police could not obtain any photos or video evidence from the victim's two cellphones. The garage where the beating took place had security cameras because Henthorn worked on motorcycles there.
The trial, before Common Pleas Judge Phil Naumoff, is expected to last at least through the end of the week.
mcaudill@gannett.com
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This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: Attempted murder trial continues in Richland County Common Pleas Court
