Friends kill homeless men and boast about severed hand

Two friends beat two homeless men to death with baseball bats, severed a hand from one of the men and bragged about the killings at the party.

Photo: Friends kill homeless men and boast about severed hand

Eric Snow, 25, and James Winquist, 23, pleaded not guilty to murder charges during their arraignment Tuesday in Hingham District Court.

The men were arrested Friday for the deaths of William Chrapan, 44, and David Lyons, 46, whose bodies were found on May 9, 2005, in an abandoned military bunker outside Bare Cove Park in Hingham. Police believe they were killed in April 2005.

It was not immediately clear what motivated the attack.

Police said two witnesses recounted how Snow and Winquist bragged about the slayings at a party where they showed off Chrapan's severed right hand, saying it belonged to one of two homeless men they had killed, police said in a report filed in court on Tuesday.

In July 2005, a witness directed police to Snow's mother's house. Investigators found Chrapan's hand buried near a utility pole not far from her yard, according to the police report.

The two men also discussed the killings in telephone calls that were recorded, police said.

A judge ordered them both held without bail pending an Oct. 5 court hearing.

Court records show both men have lengthy criminal records.