A hearing is scheduled for Sept. 19 in Ottawa County Municipal Court in the murder case of a Westlake man found dead at Put-in-Bay.

Zachary Brody, 27, was taken into custody Sept. 7 and has been charged with murder, voluntary manslaughter, and felonious assault in the death of Philip Masterson, 25.

The investigation by the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Department into the murder is now focusing on a possible motive and relationship between the victim and his accused killer, sheriff’s deputies said.

Ottawa County coroner Dr. Jerome McTague has ruled the death of Masterson was caused by blunt force trauma and strangulation.

Brody, 27, was taken into custody Sept. 7 after returning to his Campbell Hill Drive apartment in Bowling Green.

Interviews by deputies of several persons who had contact with Masterson while he was at Put-in-Bay led to Brody.

Masterson’s body was found Sept. 6 in the afternoon in a wooded area behind the Island Club, Put-in-Bay Road.

According to the sheriff’s department, he had been reported missing Sept. 5 to the Put-in-Bay Police Department.

He was lying face down and clothed only in a pair of green shorts when found, deputies said.

A brown canvas tarp that had been covering the body was nearby.

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