CLEVELAND — James Gregory Drahos has been indicted by a Cuyahoga County grand jury after human remains were found last week at a Cleveland home believed to be those of missing woman Tammy Dubuisson.
Prosecutors allege that the 58-year-old Drahos killed Dubuisson and disposed of her body in a dumpster.
According to court documents, Drahos has been charged with murder, offenses against a human corpse, tampering with evidence, and domestic violence.
He was arraigned in court Friday morning where bond was set at $1 million. He's scheduled for a pretrial at 9 a.m. on Monday, July 29.
“Questions regarding Tammy Dubuisson’s disappearance went unanswered for over a month,” said Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Michael O’Malley. “With this indictment, our office is starting to piece together the events that unfolded that tragic day and we are taking the first step to seek justice for Tammy and her family. My thoughts and prayers remain with them throughout this difficult time.”
TIMELINE OF THE CRIME
O'Malley's office reports that between May 15 to June 6, 2024, Drahos was with his live-in girlfriend, Dubuisson, at their shared residence near West 139th Street and Sherry Avenue in Cleveland's Bellaire-Puritas neighborhood.
"While in the driveway, Drahos struck Tammy Dubuisson’s head causing her to fall on the ground. He then went inside the residence and left her outside for eight to 10 hours. Drahos failed to call 911 or provide her medical services," the prosecutor's office added.
Investigators say that upon discovering Dubuisson's deceased body, "he then double-wrapped her body in construction trash bags and disposed of her in a garbage can outside their residence."
On June 6, officials allege that Drahos removed Dubuisson's body from the garbage can and transported her in a "wagon" to a nearby elementary school.
"Once there, he placed her inside the dumpster," O'Malley's office stated.
More than a month later on July 7, prosecutors say that the daughter of Drahos and Dubuisson went to the house and discovered "bone fragments in the driveway." She called police for assistance.
The Cleveland Division of Police responded to the scene and collected the bone fragments, later confirmed by the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner's Office to be human remains.
On July 9, officers arrested Drahos and said that in their initial interview he "indicated the remains are those of Tammy Dubuisson." Prosecutors add that he confessed to both killing Dubuisson and disposing of her body.
"Additionally, video evidence linked Drahos to the crime," O'Malley's office added.
Dubuisson was last seen on May 22, however her disappearance was not reported to the Cleveland Division of Police until June 19.
"Tammy has some medical conditions and may be without her medications," a Cleveland police spokesperson noted when the division first announced her disappearance last month.
A neighbor told 3News that Drahos was in a relationship with Dubuisson and that he claimed she was sick with cancer. When she asked him where Dubuisson was, and he responded that she had "moved to Indiana."
3News' Annabelle Childers and Lydia Esparra contributed to this story