San Francisco man charged with murder in connection to body found at Crissy Field
San Francisco Crissy Field
SAN FRANCISCO - A San Francisco man was charged with murder in connection to a man's body found with a gunshot wound to the head at Crissy Field earlier this month.
Investigators concluded that Leion Butler, 20, is responsible for the murder of the victim found in the Presidio on Sunday, Nov. 12.
This is according to a federal criminal complaint filed by the U.S. Attorney's Office - Northern District of California. The complaint was filed Nov. 20 and unsealed a day later.
U.S. Park Police said authorities received the first call about the victim's lifeless body just after 6:30 a.m. The unnamed victim was found with a single gunshot wound at Crissy Field's East Beach lot.
Investigators looked at surveillance video from the scene of the crime. They saw cars leaving the area around the time of the killing. In the criminal complaint, investigators said one of the cars seen leaving the area was that of the victim. The unoccupied car was found three days later. It had been double-parked for days on a street in the Hunters Point neighborhood with its license plates still attached.
Investigators obtained additional surveillance footage of the area where the victim's car was found. The video shows Butler wiping down the driver's side door and interior of the victim's car with either clothing or a towel. The video also shows the arrival of a second car. Butler is seen speaking with the driver of the second car and makes several trips between the victim's car and the second car.
The name of the person who owns the second vehicle is known to investigators, but has not been released. It is not clear if that person is suspected of a crime or if they have been charged.
The complaint describes how on the day the victim was killed, Butler's cell phone was in the vicinity of Crissy Field where the victim was found, and in Hunters Point where the victim's car was wiped down.
It is not clear if the victim and the suspect were known to one another. The complaint did not include a motive for the killing.
Butler was arrested Nov. 20 and appeared before a federal judge. He pleaded not guilty. His next court appearance is Wednesday, Nov. 22, where his detention status will be determined.