MMA fighter Wyatt faces murder charge

A mixed martial arts fighter who allegedly gouged out another man's heart and eyes after drinking mushroom tea will stand trial in Northern California on a murder charge, The Times-Standard reported Wednesday.

Jarrod Wyatt, 26, also faces charges of aggravated mayhem and torture stemming from the grisly March killing of his 21-year-old friend Taylor Powell, after a Del Norte County Superior Court judge ruled Wednesday there was sufficient evidence to put the case before a jury.

Wyatt, who has pleaded not guilty to the charges, is due to reappear in court Friday for arraignment.

Powell was killed at a home in the coastal town of Requa, about 40 miles south of the Oregon board, early on March 21. He bled to death after his heart was removed from his body while still alive, according to his death certificate.

Deputies, responding to a 911 call, found Wyatt at the scene.

Another man had raised the alarm after allegedly seeing him naked and dripping with blood, standing over the mutilated body.

The witness told officials Wyatt had earlier been acting strangely after drinking "some kind of mushroom tea."

Wyatt's MMA career is still in its earlier stages. According to Northern California's The Daily Triplicate , he had won his first pro bout in October.