A transgender woman was stabbed repeatedly and dumped into a pond tied to a block of concrete in Cleveland, Ohio.

Only known by her birth given name, Carl Acoff, police announced yesterday they had identified her body after she went missing a month earlier on 27 March.

The 20-year-old was found three weeks later naked from the waist down with multiple wounds.

The man who found her initially believed the body was a mannequin, and contacted police who checked their missing persons list.

Nicole Cantie, Acoff’s cousin, told Fox8: ‘He ain’t deserve to die like this. They didn’t have to do him like this.’

In the past, Acoff had clashed with police and the courts over her wish to be treated as a woman.

In January 2012, a judge found her guilty of possessing dangerous drugs after Acoff pleaded no contest.

These drugs included hormones used to boost oestrogen in women. She was fined $1000 (â‚¬768) and sentenced to 100 days in jail.

A year before, Acoff was fined $100 (â‚¬77) after being found guilty of failing to pay a fare and telling officers she was a woman.