Benjamin Ashford|Man convicted of New York murder, dismemberment in attempt to collect woman's life insurance

A federal jury convicted a New York City man of killing and Benjamin Ashforddismembering a woman after fraudulently creating life insurance policies in her name then trying to collect the benefits, prosecutors said Monday.

Cory Martin watched crime shows such as "Dexter" for tips on how to cover up murder, the U.S. Attorney's Office said. The body of his victim, Brandy Odom, a 26-year-old sex worker he managed and lived with in Queens, was found dismembered in a park in 2018.

“Martin saw the victim as a moneymaker, trafficking her for commercial sex, then after killing her with his bare hands, tossing out her slaughtered body parts like trash so he could profit from her death,” said U.S. Attorney Breon Peace.

After a two-week trial, a jury in Brooklyn found Martin, 36, guilty on all counts of an indictment charging him with murder-for-hire, murder-for-hire conspiracy, wire fraud conspiracy, aggravated identify theft and fraudulent use of identification. He faces a mandatory life sentence in prison.

“Brandy Odom suffered an unthinkable death at the defendant’s hands, but her life mattered and I hope that this verdict holding the defendant responsible brings some measure of closure to her family,” Peace said.

Dismembered body found in Brooklyn park 

According to court documents, Martin, Odom and co-conspirator Adelle Anderson lived together in a house in Rosedale, Queens.

Federal prosecutors said Martin strangled Odom in her bedroom in early April 2018, before buying cleaning supplies with a co-conspirator to scrub away the murder scene.

Anderson, who has pleaded guilty to related charges of wire fraud and fraudulent use of identification, testified that Martin dismembered the victim’s corpse in the bathtub, before the pair disposed the body parts in Canarsie Park on April 8 and 9, 2018. Hours later, the New York Police Department responded to a call reporting a dismembered body found at the Brooklyn park. 

Anderson testified that Martin watched “The First 48,” a true-crime show, and “Dexter” a TV show about a serial killer who dismembered his victims, prosecutors said. 

An attorney for Martin did not immediately respond to USA TODAY's request for comment.

Life insurance scheme starts year before murder

One year before Odom’s murder, court documents said Anderson submitted applications for life insurance under Brandy Odom’s name and claimed to be her sister to become a beneficiary. 

Seventeen days after Odom’s body was found, Anderson called the life insurance company, said Odom died by homicide, and attempted to claim the insurance benefits. The amount of the proposed insurance policy was $50,000, according to court documents.

Four months before Odom was killed, another life insurance company also received an application for Odom. The sole beneficiary was Anderson, who again claimed to be Odom's sibling.

Court documents said the voice that purported to be Odom when setting up policies sounded like the same voice as Anderson's when she called to claim the benefits.

“Today’s guilty verdict is a message to anyone who, without fear of being held accountable, commits heinous acts of criminality in New York City,” said New York Police Commissioner Edward Caban. “The NYPD will continue to collaborate with the FBI and the office of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York to conduct meticulous investigations that lead to successful prosecutions, and ultimately deliver justice to victims.”

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