Levi Aron was arrested earlier today in the kidnapping and murder of 8 year-old Leiby Kletzky, The New York Post reports, after authorities raided his Kensington, Brooklyn home and discovered what they believe to be Kletzky's severed feet in the refrigerator.
When police entered Aron's home he was shirtless, according to The New York Daily News, and when questioned about the boy, he nodded towards the kitchen. Officers said they also found a cutting board next to three bloody butcher knives.
Aron, who turned 35 years-old today, then led police to a dumpster two miles away in Greenwood Heights, where the rest of Kletzky's body was found.
Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly announced the arrest at a press conference this morning, according to the Associated Press. Kelly said investigators tracked Aron down after surveillance video footage showed the lost boy approach him on Monday.
Cops said Aron, who is a clerk at the Empire State Supply Co. hardware store on McDonald Avenue in Kensington, allegedly suffocated the boy before cutting him into pieces, the Post reports. Kelly said Aron "panicked" when he saw the massive search led by the Brooklyn Hasidic Jewish community and the NYPD to find Kletzy and "that's why he killed the boy."
Levi Aron is Jewish but authorities aren't sure if he's Hasidic, according to the AP.
Aron's Facebook page shows he 'Likes' the group "IS YOUR FAMILY SAFE? Find out who really lives in your area".
"He has no excuse," a source said of a possible motive to the News. "He doesn't know why he did it."
Aron's only previous run-in with the law was a ticket for public urination.