A Beaver County, Pennsylvania man allegedly shot and killed his cousin, left him in the trunk of his own car at an abandoned gas station early Tuesday in Moon and then caught a flight to Mexico, according to the charges filed against him.
25-year-old Anoosh Almas is charged with homicide, abuse of a corpse and tampering with evidence in the death of his cousin, 28-year-old Junaid Akhlas.
According to the criminal complaint against Almas, Akhlas was last seen by his brother, Umair Akhlas, around 11 p.m. Monday when he left their home to give Almas a ride to Pittsburgh International Airport. When he didn’t return home, his brother went to look for him.
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Umair Akhlas told police no one could reach his brother or Almas that night, though Almas eventually contacted another family member and said he hadn’t seen his cousin since he was dropped off at the airport, according to the complaint.
Umair Akhlas went to the airport the next morning and ultimately reported his brother missing to Allegheny County Police, according to the complaint.
The county’s license plate reader system placed Junaid Akhlas’s car in several places around Moon, including near Walmart around 12:41 a.m. Tuesday and near Business 376 around 12:50 a.m., according to the complaint. It never entered the airport.
Police and family members began searching that area, according to the complaint, and the car was ultimately found at an abandoned Texaco station on University Boulevard in Coraopolis. Junaid Akhlas was discovered dead in the trunk. He’d been shot in the head, authorities said.
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Another family member told investigators he’d seen an email on Almas’s computer indicating he’d booked a flight to Mexico, according to the complaint. Police discovered Almas was ticketed for a Spirit flight from Pittsburgh to Cancun shortly before 10 a.m. Tuesday. Family members identified him on security footage in the airport.
Investigators also tracked down a Lyft driver who picked up Almas at the Super 8 Motel on University Boulevard about 7 a.m. Tuesday, police said. The driver said his passenger walked out of the motel and put a shopping bag into the garbage.
Police checked the trash can, according to the complaint, and found a bag of bloody clothing.
Police said Almas is about 5 feet, 7 inches tall, around 210 pounds and of medium build. They ask anyone with information to contact county police via the department’s tip line at 1-833-255-8477.
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