Suspects charged in transgender man's death plead not guilty to torture, murder

March 11 (UPI) -- Seven suspects, charged in the death of Sam Nordquist, have pleaded not guilty to torturing and killing the Black transgender man inside an upstate New York hotel room.

Precious Arzuaga, Jennifer Quijano, Kyle Sage, Patrick Goodwin, Thomas Eaves, Kimberly Socchia and Emily Motyka were arraigned Tuesday in Ontario County Court on multiple charges after investigators said Nordquist was beaten, sexually assaulted and starved for more than a month before he died.

All seven pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder, second-degree murder, kidnapping, conspiracy, endangering the welfare of a child and concealment of a human corpse.

Arzuaga pleaded not guilty to the coercion of two young children who were forced to partake in Nordquist's torture, according to the 11-page indictment. Arzuaga and three others also pleaded not guilty to aggravated sexual abuse charges.

All of the defendants were returned to jail Tuesday without bail. If convicted of first-degree murder, they could face life in prison without parole.

Nordquist, 24, had traveled to New York in September to meet Arzuaga, his online girlfriend, and was expected to return home to Minnesota. His sister Kayla set up a GoFundMe campaign for his family to travel to New York after losing contact and reporting him missing.

Investigators found what they called a "deeply disturbing pattern of abuse" at Patty's Lodge in Hopewell, N.Y., including evidence that Nordquist was tortured with sticks, ropes, canes and belts from January to February before he succumbed to his injuries, according to court documents. Investigators determined Nordquist had been staying with Arzuaga and the other suspects at the motel.

Last month, police discovered Nordquist's body in a field in Yates County, about 50 miles southeast of Rochester.

Throughout the investigation, LGBTQ advocates have urged prosecutors to pursue hate crime charges, but Ontario County Assistant District Attorney Kelly Wolford said last week that to "limit us to a hate crime would be an injustice to Sam."

"A hate crime would make this charge about Sam's gender or about Sam's race and it's so much bigger," Wolford added.

"We'll never know the answer why, because what human being could do what happened to Sam?" she said. "We'll never make sense of this case."