Police in Arizona say a teen took his mother out into a field, killed her, and then called the police to say she was taken away.
The police thought the 18-year-old defendant was responsible for the murder because of the order in which events happened.
A runner found the body of Mary Collier, 38, in the plowed rows of a crop field in the San Tan Valley, a large community and census-designated place in Pinal County, on Wednesday morning.
That day, there would be two calls to 911 about the woman.
A press release from the Pinal County Sheriff’s Office says the first call came in around 9 a.m. and was from the jogger.
That day, James Richey went for a run. Since then, he’s talked to a lot of local media outlets in the Phoenix area.
The body was found in a big area of farmland west of Gantzel Road and south of Skyline Drive. It wasn’t too far from the railroad tracks.
Richey told KPHO in Phoenix, Arizona, “I was hoping that it was kind of like a Halloween scarecrow or something like that, that someone just threw it out here or like a prop.” “It was starting to look like a real person as I got closer and closer,”
He saw that the body was real. It was also thought to be the murder weapon.
Richey said, “It was a butcher’s knife.” He then went on to talk about the knife that a famous horror movie character from the “Halloween” movies used: “Like a Michael Myers knife,” she said.
Also, the blood was real. These realizations backed up the worst fears.
“As soon as I saw the blood on the blade, I knew this was a dead body.” For more, Richey told the TV station, “This is a crime scene.” “The handle was broken in two, and the blade was just lying there with blood all over it.”
The jogger was waiting for police to arrive when another call came in, less than 10 minutes after he called 911.
The caller this time said that someone had been kidnapped on West Vineyard Plains Drive, according to the sheriff’s office.
The house in question is in the Skyline Ranch neighborhood, which is less than a mile from where Collier’s body was found and easy to get to on foot. The farm where the woman is thought to have been killed is right next door.
The deputies quickly figured out that both 911 calls were about the same person.
The sheriff’s office said in a press release that the second 911 call was made by the victim’s 18-year-old son. “He has been named as the person suspected of murder.” Deputies found him with wounds he had caused himself and took him to the hospital. When he gets out of the hospital, he will be booked into the Pinal County Jail for First Degree Murder.
As of this writing, the alleged killer’s name has not been made public.
The police haven’t given a reason for the fight between the mother and son. Deputies did say that there was a call about domestic violence from the Collier address the night before, but it was only about a fight between the two people.
Richey told KPNX in Phoenix, Arizona, “I just don’t know how someone could be so mad and angry that their first thought is to go kill someone, let alone your mother.”
That morning, the suspect was seen walking back home by a neighbor of the Collier family, who told Fox affiliate KSAZ in Phoenix.
As the neighbor stood outside with their dog, they saw the man in question walking from the field toward the house. “About an hour later, my wife told me there are cops everywhere,” the neighbor added. “I didn’t notice anything strange.” He was just walking back to his house; he wasn’t acting strange.
The victim’s niece set up a GoFundMe page to get money for her family. The online fundraiser says that Collier leaves behind four children and a husband who is sick and can’t work.
A GoFundMe page says, “Mary, I hope all of our love finds you in heaven, because I know that’s where you are.” “Please know that your family will always be here for you. We’ll take care of them and they miss you.” Even as I write this, I can feel you. Your soul has never been warmer.
It is said that the investigation is still going on. As of this writing, the alleged killer was still in the hospital getting better, according to the police.
The Pinal County Sheriff’s Office for more information about this story, but at the time of publication, they had not responded.
