Joel Guy: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know

Joel Guy is accused of murdering his parents after Thanksgiving. (East Baton Rouge Sheriff’s Office)

Joel Guy was arrested Tuesday evening in the alleged gruesome murder of his parents, Joel Guy Sr., 61, and Lisa Guy, 55. Their mutilated bodies were found Monday at their home in Tennessee, though the killings are suspected to have taken place sometime between Friday and mid-day Saturday.

Guy, 28, resided in Louisiana and went home after the alleged murders. He is being held at the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison on a charge of being a fugitive from justice in Tennessee, where he’s wanted on two counts of first-degree murder.

Here’s what you need to know:

1. He Attempted to Dissolve His Parent’s Bodies in Acid After Murdering Them, Cops Say

According to police, the couple had stab wounds and had been dismembered after a Thanksgiving holiday with Guy and his three sisters. Investigators said that after the killings, Guy tried to dissolve his parent’s bodies in an acid solution.

Authorities said the couple’s remains were found in multiple rooms throughout their home, CBS reported.

Knox County Sheriff’s Office Maj. Michael K. MacLean said in a news conference that Guy placed the bodies in a mixture of drain cleaner, hydrogen peroxide, bleach, sewer line cleaner and other chemicals in an an attempt to dissolve the remains.

2. His Parents May Have Been Cutting Off Financial Help

Though a motive was not confirmed, Maclean said Guy’s parents were “in the process of encouraging him to fend for himself,” and planned on talking to him on Thanksgiving about cutting off at least some financial support.

Guy’s father was recently laid off from his job, The Advocate reported.

Guy reportedly studied to become a plastic surgeon at Louisiana State University (LSU) for for nine years. Authorities confirmed that he did attend LSU, but withdrew last year, The Knox County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that Guy Jr. had previously attended Louisiana State University, but reportedly withdrew last year, according to Kingsport Times-News.

3. Authorities Discovered the Bodies After a Welfare Check

Maclean told reporters that the bodies were discovered Monday afternoon after Guy’s worried co-workers said that she had missed a morning meeting. “They indicated Lisa had set up a scheduled meeting that day that she would not miss,” MacLean said.

When deputies arrived, they found a “horrific, very gruesome crime scene,” and said body parts had been spread across multiple rooms in the Knoxville home. There were apparent signs of a struggle, Maclean said.

Maclean said neighbors hadn’t noticed anything amiss at the home, though when authorities arrived they found a dog “incessantly barking” in an upstairs room.

Police believe the couple was killed sometime between Friday and Saturday afternoon, The Advocate reported.

4. His Sisters Noticed ‘Nothing Unusual’ With Him Before the Murders

Maclean said that Guy’s sisters, who all reside in Tennessee and spent Thanksgiving at the couple’s home, told authorities that nothing seemed amiss during the holiday.
Guy gave them no indication that anything was wrong or that something so horrific would happen.

However, the women did say they believed he would only stay at the home until Friday, and were surprised that he was there through the weekend.

“Just horrifying thinking that the quiet neighborhood where everyone waves at each other and willing to help each other, this could happen our street,” a neighbor told WBIR. “It’s just hard to believe that could happen.”

5. The Couple Was Preparing a Retire

Maclean revealed that Guy’s parents had recently sold their home and were looking forward to retiring to a grandparent’s former home in Surgoinsville, Tennessee.

They were last seen alive preparing to move a boat to their new home, and were accompanied by Guy.

Officials expect to extradite Guy Knox back to Tennessee from Louisiana in the next couple of days, according to WBIR.