A New York woman is facing a rare criminal charge for allegedly torturing her partner for months before ultimately killing her and dumping the body in a storage bin behind her apartment building, according to prosecutors.
Kenya Tilford, 41, was arraigned last week before the New York State Supreme Court on an 18-count indictment alleging she tortured Concetta Morton for three months before killing her last fall.
Charges against Tilford include murder, strangulation, concealment of a human corpse, and intimidating a victim or witness, among others. The county said its the first time in its history that charges have been brought against someone for a torture killing.
"In a first for this Office, we are charging the defendant for not only murder, but also for allegedly acting in an especially cruel manner and inflicting torture upon Ms. Morton before her death," District Attorney Miriam Rocah said in a statement.
According to her office, Tilford tortured the 27-year-old for three months before strangling her to death. She then allegedly dumped Morton's body in a storage bin behind her New Rochelle apartment.
"During this period, the defendant was captured on surveillance video purchasing a hooded coverall, bleach, tarps, paper towels, rubber gloves, a chainsaw and the storage bin in which the victim’s body was found," a press release from the Westchester County DA's Office said Monday.
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Morton's body was found thanks to a tip to Tarrytown police. Tilford was then arrested on Sept. 15, 2023.
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Prosecutors also brought charges against Tilford for allegedly threating someone with a knife and physically assaulting an intimate partner.
Attorney information for Tilford was not immediately known. She's due back in court on July 16.
