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Ex-Boyfriend Indicted In Murder Of NYPD Investigator
By
Jen Chung
Published May 22, 2009
Modified May 22, 2009
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By
Jen Chung
Published May 22, 2009
Modified May 22, 2009
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A grand jury indicted Gary McGurk for the murder of his ex-girlfriend, Michelle Lee. Last month, the body Lee, an NYPD criminalist, was found in her Sunnyside apartment; she was strangled, stabbed in the throat, and burned with an iron.
According to the Daily News, McGurk, an Irish national who plays soccer at John Jay College, "told Lee he was broke and suffering from cancer, and that he could not afford or get medical insurance, so she gave him money. Investigators don't believe Lee was the first to fall for McGurk's con job. McGurk was a 'professional student' who bilked unsuspecting young women to bankroll "his life in the U.S., they said." It's possible that the money was an issue Lee moved out of her parents' house into her own place, though it's "unclear if the violence came to a head because the money was drying up and she asked to be repaid, or because she learned the illness was a hoax and grew tired of his games."
The News adds that on a website, McGurk said of himself, "[I am] my own person and I do not intend to change for anyone. ... I'm capable of switching accents at will. ... I'm an a--hole, no regrets."
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Michelle Lee
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Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
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