A New York man pleaded guilty to killing his former girlfriend whose dismembered remains were found inside a suitcase at his home after she ended their relationship.
Authorities searching for Alberta Dale at Damon Foy’s Ulster County home in April 2024 discovered he killed, then dismembered her, and was trying to get rid of her body, according to authorities.
The discovery was made after Dale, 44, of Pennsylvania, was reported missing by family members in that state, the Ulster County District Attorney’s Office said in a Thursday, October 8, news release, announcing Foy’s guilty plea.
Investigators believe Foy, now 50, killed Dale between March 31, 2024 and April 1, 2024, after she broke up with him, according to prosecutors. Foy reportedly told police he snapped because she “played him like a fool” and kicked him out of his home.
Ulster County sheriff’s deputies first visited Foy’s home to conduct a welfare check for Dale on April 1, 2024, prosecutors said.
The next day, a local citizen found Dale’s personal property along the side of the road in Wawarsing before deputies then executed a search warrant at Foy’s home and found her remains, according to the district attorney’s office.
“She’s in there,” Foy allegedly told investigators who discovered Dale’s severed head and other remains with a flower inside a suitcase that was stored in his closet, according to prosecutors and court documents obtained by Law&Crime.
“The remaining portions of her dismembered body were not located during the execution of the search warrant,” prosecutors reportedly said.
Foy pleaded guilty to second-degree murder on Wednesday, October 7, in Dale’s death, the district attorney’s office said.
“Over the past two and a half years, our office committed significant resources to this case and worked closely with the Ulster County Sheriff’s Office, New York State Police, and our law enforcement partners to hold Damon Foy accountable,” Ulster County Chief Assistant District Attorney Elizabeth Culmone-Mills said in a statement. “Alberta’s family showed extraordinary strength and trust throughout this process. We are grateful to them, and to every investigator, prosecutor and member of our office who dedicated so much to seeking justice for Alberta.”
When Foy allegedly killed Dale, she had an active protection order against him after he was accused of previous incidents of domestic violence, per Law&Crime.
“This case exemplifies in one person the evil of domestic violence,” Ulster County District Attorney Emmanuel C. Nneji said in a statement. “The total selfish disregard for the life and dignity of another person is at the heart of domestic violence; Damon Foy has shown that to us.”
“We must recognize in our laws the rights of victims of domestic violence to be physically, psychologically, and emotionally safe from their tormentors and the dangers specifically targeted for them, and demand procedures that actually protect victims for real, not just on paper,” Nneji added.
Foy is set to be sentenced in Ulster County Court on December 16.
Ulster County is about a 105-mile drive north from New York City.
If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 for confidential support.
