Source: Brother of man who dismembered boy found dead

NEW YORK — The brother of a man who kidnapped and dismembered a lost 8-year-old boy has been found dead, his body bound, wrapped in a blanket and stuffed in a basement closet in the same Brooklyn home where detectives uncovered the gruesome remains of the boy nearly six years ago.

Detectives found Tzvi Aron’s body after police were called there by family, a law enforcement official said. Aron, 29, a bakery worker, had been last seen Tuesday. The death is being investigated as a homicide; Aron had been recently threatened but it wasn’t clear why, the official said. The official wasn’t authorized to speak publicly about an ongoing investigation and spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity.

Tzvi’s brother, Levi Aron, pleaded guilty in the kidnapping and killing of 8-year-old Leiby Kletzky in July 2011.

Leiby got lost on his walk home from a religious day camp. It was the first time he was allowed to walk alone, and he was supposed to travel about seven blocks to meet his mother, but missed his turn. He ran into Levi Aron on the street, who promised to take Leiby home.

But instead, Aron brought the boy about 40 miles upstate to Monsey, N.Y., where he attended a wedding before bringing him back to his home. He kept him there overnight and the following day as he went to work at a hardware store.