Portsmouth man indicted on several charges after he allegedly killed his landord

A Portsmouth man has been indicted on multiple charges after being accused of killing his landlord.

According to the Attorney General’s Office, the Newport County Grand Jury returned an indictment this month charging 25-year-old Jacob Morrill with one count of first-degree murder, one count of driving a vehicle without the consent of the owner/lessee, and one count of fraudulent use of a credit card totaling more than $100.

At approximately 4:30 p.m. on May 22nd, the Tiverton Police Department contacted the Portsmouth Police and requested that our department check the well-being of 50-year-old Xue Feng Wu. Wu had left his residence in Tiverton to check on his rental property located at 1722 West Main Road early in the day and had not been heard from since.

Portsmouth Police officers responded to the residence and spoke with Morrill, the tenant of 1722 West Main Road. Morrill provided information to the responding officers that Wu had been at the residence earlier in the day and then left to go to court in Providence. Officers cleared. the scene and had no further information at this time.

At approximately 6:00 p.m., the Portsmouth Police Department was contacted and advised by the caller that they had information pertaining to a crime at 1722 West Main Road. Officers responded again to 1722 West Main Road to investigate.

At approximately 6:10 p.m., Jacob Morrill contacted PD and stated to the desk officer that he struck and killed Wu. Morrill informed the desk officer that he would meet police behind the Mobil gas station, 1568 West Main Road. At that location, officers located Morrill and he was subsequently detained.

Morrill provided information to officers regarding the incident and advised officers of the crime and location of the body of the victim. Officers located the body of the victim down a pathway in the rear wooded area of 1722 West Main Road. The body had been wrapped in a tarp and held down in place by a section of wire fencing and other objects in an area of brush off the pathway.

Officers were able to confirm that the victim was deceased and observed that he had suffered apparent severe injuries to his head.

The Portsmouth Police Detective Division responded and subsequently began an investigation of the incident. The investigation revealed that a confrontation had occurred between the suspect and Wu inside of a garage on the property. During that confrontation, Wu was struck in the head and killed by the suspect with a small handheld axe. The suspect then
moved the body of Wu to the area of brush where he had been located by the first responding officers. After executing court authorized search warrants, the Detective Division was able to recover numerous items of evidentiary value including the suspected weapon used to kill the victim.

The new driving a vehicle without the consent of the owner/lessee, and fraudulent use of a credit card totaling more than $100 charges also took place on May 22nd, according to the Attorney General’s Office.

Morrill has been held without bail and is scheduled to be arraigned on August 24th in Newport County Superior Court.