Man killed business partner and hid body in trunk for weeks, Las Vegas police say

By Judy J. Beasley Last updated Oct 13, 2022

LAS VEGAS, Nev. (FOX5) – A man is accused of killing his business partner and hiding her body in the trunk of his car for weeks, even storing the car in a storage unit as the body lies was breaking down, according to court documents from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police.

Tony Danh, 37, is accused of killing Amir Haggi in early June, according to LVMPD. Danh was arrested in San Diego County on September 29.

Haggi was reported missing in Phoenix on June 9 and was last seen on June 5. Haggi’s body was discovered in the trunk of a BMW at a Budget Suites, located at 3655 W. Tropicana Ave. in Las Vegas on August 19 when someone called 911 reporting a foul odor coming from the car.

The car was a white BMW with an Arizona license plate that was dropped off by an unknown tow truck around 10:30 a.m. that morning. The BMW was listed on Haggi’s missing person report, but was registered with Danh with an address in Cerritos, California.

The windows were not tinted and officers saw trash bags, medical gloves and a bottle of ammonia in the vehicle. In the trunk, officers found a “poorly decomposing human body” partially wrapped in trash bags, according to court documents. Investigators said the body was too decomposed to immediately determine gender, race, identity or any injuries, as he was temporarily named “Tropicana Road Doe”.

Detectives said Haggi co-owned an Elite360 business with Danh. Danh was known to have a gambling problem and asked Haggi for money shortly before he disappeared, according to police. Employees of Haggi and Danh said they did not receive paychecks the first week of June and have not been able to obtain the pair since.

The Clark County Coroner’s Office determined that “Tropicana Road Doe” bore many physical similarities to Haggi. Haggi was formally identified as the victim on August 25. The coroner’s office said Haggi died of two gunshot wounds to the head and his death was ruled a homicide.

Tow truck company NV Cars was contacted on August 19 by Danh asking them to tow a vehicle, according to court documents. Danh said he was staying at an AirBNB and moving to Budget Suites, but his wife lost the car key. The employee said he noticed the foul smell coming from the car, but Danh said it was coming from trash bags in the garage. Danh requested that he be dropped off at the Casino d’Orléans and the trailer driver complied, according to the report. Surveillance then showed Danh being picked up by a Lyft driver and then dropped off at a rental car company.

Car tracking records and surveillance showed Danh returned to the Budget Suites where the BMW was dropped off on August 19 around 2 p.m., records show. LVMPD officers began their investigation of the BMW at the same location around 2:10 p.m. that day. The vehicle was then tracked to Mexico later that night. Records show Danh had also rented a Nissan SUV from the same company from June 7-9.

Danh also reportedly began renting a storage unit on June 7. Records show Danh accessed the unit on June 8 from 11:17 a.m. to 3:18 p.m. No further activity was recorded until August 17 at around 9:57 a.m., when the BMW was seen. output from the storage unit.

The LVMPD investigated the unit on August 29 and found semi-dried liquid on the floor, consistent with decomposition flowing from the trunk. The fluid also tested positive for the presence of blood, according to reports.

Police signed a warrant for Danh’s arrest on August 30, but he was arrested in California on September 29.

FULL TIMELINE:

Below is the timeline of the investigation into the murder of Amir Haggi, according to LVMPD:

June 4, Danh’s BMW captured under surveillance in Phoenix
On June 5 around 743P, Danh said Haggi
On June 5 at around 750P, Haggi was last seen alive on a security camera in Phoenix. Haggi had no luggage or backpack.
On June 7, Danh rents a storage box and a sedan in Las Vegas
On June 8, Danh entered the storage unit for a few hours
Between June 8 and August 16, Danh traveled to Mexico and was seen returning to the United States on August 16.
On August 16, Danh was seen buying cleaning supplies at Walmart in California and rented a house.
On August 17, Danh returns to the storage unit. Police believe the BMW was in the unit from June 8.
August 18, Danh drives the BMW from the storage unit
On August 19, Danh had the BMW towed to Budget Suites. Meanwhile, Danh also went to the car rental place and rented an SUV. Danh then drove the SUV to Budget Suites, where police were investigating the BMW at the same time, then drove the SUV to Mexico.