A man, Tyree Smith, consumed parts of his friend’s brain and eyes, likening them to the taste of oysters, in a gruesome incident. Smith, 35, had been talking about Greek deities and a desire to commit violence before fatally attacking Angel ‘Tun Tun’ Gonzalez with a hatchet and eating parts of his body in December 2011. Gonzalez’s mutilated remains were found in an abandoned Bridgeport residence where Smith had resided in his childhood in January 2012.
Before the tragic event, Smith had visited his cousin, Nicole Rabb, expressing his fascination with Greek gods and a thirst for blood. The following day, covered in blood and armed with a weapon, he admitted to consuming Gonzalez’s organs while under the influence of Sake. Smith confessed to the act, mentioning that he had “obtained his blood.”
Smith detailed that he found Gonzalez’s eye similar in taste to oysters and disclosed how he had consumed the body parts in a cemetery after dismembering Gonzalez’s corpse using an axe. Despite expressing remorse in court in 2013, stating his sorrow and dissociation from his actions, doubts lingered regarding his future behavior, as raised by Gonzalez’s sister-in-law during a prior hearing.
Following a decision by Connecticut’s Psychiatric Security Review Board (PSRB), Smith, who had been sentenced to 60 years in a maximum-security mental facility, was permitted to leave Connecticut Valley Hospital in Middletown in February. He had been residing in a Waterbury group home once deemed “stabilized” by the PSRB. Concerns were voiced by State Senator Paul Cicarella over the release of an individual associated with murder and cannibalism.
According to Dr. Caren Teitelbaum, Smith had been a positive presence in the group home, offering support to other residents. However, the decision to release him sparked controversy, with concerns raised about public safety and the impact on crime victims and their families. Despite assurances of stability and adherence to treatment, doubts remained regarding the potential dangers if Smith were to discontinue his medication.
In a ruling in February, Smith was officially discharged from Whiting Forensic Hospital, where he had been committed following a Superior Court order in 2013. The decision to release him was met with strong opposition from several senators who questioned the safety implications and expressed disbelief over the verdict.
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