WARNING: The story includes graphic depictions of abuse and torture. Unthinkable crimes were committed against a Minnesota transgender man in New York, with seven people now charged.
“Sam was beaten, assaulted, sexually abused, starved, and held captive, and we cannot make sense of that,” said Ontario County New York District Attorney Kelly Wolford, describing Sam Nordquist’s pain and suffering while imprisoned in a small room of an upstate motel for a month before his death.
“He was forced to drink urine and chew spit,” the DA stated. They physically restrained him. They forced him to obey their commands and treated him like a dog.”
The indictment came the day after Nordquist was laid to rest in his home state of Minnesota. Nordquist, a Black man, was transgender, but authorities have found no evidence of a hate crime. Authorities report that one of the alleged assailants was LGBTQ+ and lived with Nordquist.
In September, the 24-year-old traveled from Oakdale, Minnesota, to Ontario County, New York, to meet a woman he met online. Precious Arzuaga is one of seven people charged in the indictment with first- and second-degree murder, two counts of kidnapping, conspiracy, and two counts of endangering the welfare of a child.
“Sam was confined,” Wolford explains. “He was forced to kneel and stand against a wall.” He was physically assaulted. He had been sexually assaulted. He was stopped from using his phone. He was denied adequate nutrition and hydration. He was fed feces.
The seven are also accused of concealing Nordquist’s body, which they allegedly wrapped in plastic bags and dumped in a farm field.
According to Wolford, first-degree murder charges carry the most serious penalties under New York state law. The charge requires the prosecution to show that the defendants tortured Nordquist because they “enjoyed it.”
