Local man charged with killing girlfriend enters plea

CLEVELAND (WJW) – A Cleveland man charged with killing his girlfriend and throwing her body in a dumpster has entered a plea.

James Drahos, 58, entered a not guilty plea Friday.

He was indicted earlier this week on charges of murder, gross abuse of a corpse, tampering with evidence and domestic violence.

Drahos is accused in Tammy Dubuisson’s murder.

His bond was set at $1 million.

Prosecutors said Dubuisson was murdered in her driveway near West 139th Street and Sherry Avenue between mid-May and early June.

Drahos allegedly struck Dubuisson in the head, causing her to fall to the ground, according to prosecutors. He’s accused of leaving her outside for eight to 10 hours without calling 911.

Prosecutors say Drahos then “double-wrapped her body in construction trash bags and disposed of her in a garbage can outside their residence.”

He allegedly removed her body on June 6 and put her remains in a dumpster near an elementary school, according to the Cuyahoga County Prosecutor’s Office.

As FOX 8 previously reported , Dubuisson, who had been last seen on May 22, was reported missing on June 19. She was featured on FOX 8’s Missing segment with Amanda Berry.

According to investigators, their daughter found bone fragments in the driveway on July 7 and called Cleveland police.

Investigators served a search warrant at the home and collected the remains, which were sent to the Cuyahoga County Medical Examiner’s Office.

Drahos was arrested on July 9 and, according to prosecutors, admitted to Cleveland homicide detectives that he killed his girlfriend and disposed of her body. Investigators said video evidence also linked him to the murder.

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