Houston County Sheriff: Klaffka Beaten and Strangled to Death

PERRY, Georgia (41NBC/WMGT) – Houston County investigators are releasing new details into what led to the death of a man pulled from the Ocmulgee River Sunday afternoon.

They say Mathew Pike, Daniel Slaton, and William Slaton beat and strangled Justin Klaffka, then put his body in the river.  The murder happened at a home on Dixie Trail in Warner Robins five days before his body was discovered.

Investigators say Klaffka’s murder stemmed from the four of them robbing a home on Easter Sunday.  The three suspects killed Klaffka because they thought he told someone about the robbery.

The three are in jail, charged with murder and are expected to face additional charges.

The Houston County Sheriff’s Office received assistance in this investigation from the Warner Robins Police Department, Centerville Police Department, Bibb County Sheriff’s Office, Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Georgia Bureau of Investigations and Georgia State Patrol’s Aviation Unit and Dive Team.