Prosecutors said Corey Martin was “motivated by greed” in the killing of 26-year-old Brandy Odom in April 2018.
A Queens, New York, man has been convicted of murdering and dismembering a woman in a scheme to collect life insurance benefits and prosecutors say he was inspired by shows like "The First 48" and "Dexter” on how to carry out his crimes.
Cory Martin, 36, was convicted Monday on all counts of a superseding indictment charging him with murder-for-hire, murder-for-hire conspiracy, wire fraud conspiracy, aggravated identify theft and fraudulent use of identification relating to a scheme to fraudulently obtain life insurance policies in the name of a woman, murder her and collect the insurance proceeds.
The verdict followed a two-week trial and he will be sentenced at a later date. Martin faces a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment.
“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,” NYPD Commissioner Edward Caban said in a press release. “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.”
Prosecutors said Martin was “motivated by greed” in the killing of 26-year-old Brandy Odom in April 2018.
Prosecutors said Martin and a co-conspirator, Adelle Anderson, took out life insurance policies on Odom, 26, leading up to the grisly murder.
Martin was called a pimp by prosecutors and Odom was a sex worker of his when, in 2017, Martin and the co-conspirator fraudulently obtained two life insurance policies in Odom’s name.
The U.S. Attorneys Office of the Eastern District of New York says that Martin and the co-conspirator made premium payments to the life insurance companies by Western Union money orders and by using a debit card in Odom’s name.
At trial, Anderson testified that prior to Odom’s murder, she and the defendant watched the true-crime TV show “The First 48,” which is about police tactics where they talked about “what not to do, and what things to do to avoid being caught by the police.”
Anderson testified that Martin also watched “Dexter,” a TV show about a serial killer who dismembered his victims, because the defendant was “looking for ways to commit the crime when he got rid of Brandy.”
In April 2018, Martin strangled Odom in her bedroom. Martin and Anderson then purchased cleaning supplies and a vacuum in order to clean up the murder scene. Website searches on the pimp’s computer included Home Depot for a “Dewalt 12-Amp Corded Reciprocating Saw,” described as featuring a “powerful 12 Amp motor designed for heavy-duty applications.” He also searched YouTube for “how to insert blade for reciprocating saw” and “using reciprocating saw,” according to the U.S. Attorney’s Office of the Eastern District of New York.
Anderson testified that Martin used an electric saw to dismember the victim’s corpse in the bathtub after covering every surface in the bathroom with heavy-duty, black garbage bags to eliminate evidence of the killing.
Days after the searches, Martin disposed of Odom’s body parts in Canarsie Park with the assistance of his co-conspirator.
Following the dumping of the corpse, prosecutors said Martin conducted dozens of web searches for news articles, including “Search area expands after dismembered body found in Canarsie Park in Brooklyn.”
After Odom’s murder, at Martin’s direction, his co-conspirator made several unsuccessful attempts to claim benefits under Odom’s life insurance policies.
“It is fitting that Martin faces a mandatory sentence to spend the rest of his life in prison for this ghastly, cold-blooded crime that was motivated by greed and executed after extensive planning,” US Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Breon Peace said in a statement.
Anderson previously pleaded guilty to murder-for-hire, identity theft and wire fraud, a spokesperson for the US Attorney’s Office said. She has not been sentenced.
