A New York man has confessed to killing his former girlfriend, cutting up her body and storing her severed head inside a suitcase with a flower.
Court records reviewed by Our News Outlet say Damon Foy, 50, strangled Alberta Dale, 44, between March 31 and April 1, 2024, shortly after she ended their relationship.
Foy allegedly dismembered Dale at his Kerhonkson home, roughly 100 miles north of New York City. He discarded the rest of her remains but kept her head in the apartment as a gruesome keepsake.
Dale had previously obtained an order of protection against Foy, and the pair had a documented history of domestic violence. Authorities began investigating on April 1 after her relatives reported her missing and asked police to check on her welfare at Foy’s apartment.
The following day, officers found Dale’s severed head inside a carry-on suitcase concealed in a closet. Foy was arrested at the residence.
A grand jury later indicted him on charges that included second-degree murder, aggravated criminal contempt, concealing a human corpse, criminal contempt, criminal mischief, assault, strangulation and criminal possession of a weapon.
Foy pleaded guilty to second-degree murder last week. In return, prosecutors agreed to dismiss the remaining charges.
The plea deal calls for a sentence of 23 years to life in prison, two years less than New York’s maximum guideline of 25 years to life for second-degree murder. His sentencing is set for December 16.
Alberta Dale, 44, was strangled by her former boyfriend in 2024. Prosecutors say he later dismembered her body and kept her head in a suitcase with a flower
Damon Foy, 50, pleaded guilty to Dale’s murder last week. He faces 23 years to life in prison and is scheduled to be sentenced in December
Dale’s relatives contacted authorities on April 1 after she stopped responding and they became increasingly worried about her safety. The family knew about the violence in her relationship with Foy and the protective order she had secured against him.
Police carried out two welfare checks at Foy’s apartment that day but did not find Dale inside. Her vehicle was still parked outside the building.
Foy told investigators that Dale had left the apartment in an Uber or Lyft the previous day because she could not afford gas or repairs for her car, explaining why the vehicle remained at the property.
According to Foy, Dale had visited to collect some belongings. He claimed he was not present when she arrived or departed because of the protective order, and said their last conversation had taken place by phone about a day earlier.
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The next day, a resident found a cellphone on the roadside and handed it to police. Detectives soon established that the phone belonged to Dale.
Around the same time, an assistant district attorney informed police that Dale had previously warned an employee with the Ulster County Crime Victims Assistance Program that, “if she went missing, it was because [Foy] killed her.”
Six armed officers went back to Foy’s apartment on April 2 and searched the home after he gave permission. He had been drinking before their arrival and continued consuming alcohol as the search progressed, becoming increasingly intoxicated.
Investigators reported a powerful odor of bleach inside the apartment. They also saw an uncapped bottle of bleach on the kitchen counter and a bucket containing a new mop in a corner.
Police discovered Dale’s dismembered remains at this Kerhonkson, New York, apartment complex
Officers noted that the bathroom in one of the two upstairs bedrooms was “immaculately clean.” An open package of rubber gloves was found in the main bedroom.
As police searched the residence, Foy told an officer: ‘I’m at the point now where I gotta call a lawyer.’ He also said: ‘I loved this girl.’
Foy was standing in front of a closet, and an officer asked him to move so he could search it. Inside, there was a suitcase that was ‘quite heavy for the size of the bag,’ police noted.
When a deputy shined a flashlight on the suitcase, he saw what appeared to be dried blood on it. When asked what it was, Foy got defensive, held up his hands and said: ‘See, no defensive wounds.’
A detective asked Foy if Dale was in the suitcase, to which he replied: ‘Are you out of your mind?’
The officers then remained in the residence while waiting for a warrant to search the suitcase. During the wait, Foy whispered to one of the detectives: ‘I killed her. She’s in there, I killed her.’
Once police received the warrant and opened the suitcase, they found Dale’s severed head, but the rest of her remains were missing. A flower was also inside.
When a detective interviewed Foy in custody the next day, he asked why Foy had placed the flower in the bag.
The murderer said, ‘I loved that girl’ and that he was trying to figure out ‘what still happened last night to take s*** over the top.’
