Woman found dead in San Tan Valley; son charged with murder: PCSO

SAN TAN VALLEY, Ariz. – The Pinal County Sheriff’s Office is investigating after a woman’s body was found in San Tan Valley on October 30.

According to a statement, the victim was found in a farm field west of Gantzel Road and south of Skyline Drive. Officials said the body was first found around 9 a.m. by a jogger, discarded in an open field and behind piles of dirt.

About 10 minutes later, officials said another emergency call came in. They say the caller, identified as the victim’s son, reported his mother had been kidnapped. By then, however, officers had already reached her body.

The victim was identified as 38-year-old Mary Collier, and authorities say her cause of death appears to be blunt force trauma from a sharp object.

As for the suspect, authorities say he is 18 years old but have not released his name. They found him at their home, suffering from self-inflicted wounds that were likely from a sharp object.

The suspect was taken to a hospital.

Despite earlier reports from PCSO that the woman had been kidnapped, they now say that no kidnapping ever took place.

PCSO says the trouble started with a verbal argument Tuesday night, but the attack appears to have happened at some point Wednesday morning.

The victim lived with her husband, the suspect and at least one other child.

According to investigators, the suspect will be arrested when he is released from the hospital. The motive was still unknown Wednesday afternoon.

‘I knew it was a crime scene’

A morning walk took a terrifying turn when James Richey came across Collier’s body.

“You get so upset that you want to kill someone? Kill your mother? Do you think so? I just don’t understand it,” he said. ‘It was bloody. I think I saw some stab wounds on her shoulders and stuff. I didn’t get too close because as soon as I saw the knife I knew it was a crime scene.’

A neighbor who wished to remain anonymous said the family kept aloof.

That neighbor apparently saw the suspect after the murder took place.

“I was standing at the door with my dog ​​and I saw the gentleman in question walking towards the house from the direction of the field and then, about an hour later, the woman told me that there are police everywhere. I didn’t see anything. unusual, he wasn’t acting strange, he was just walking back to his house,” the neighbor said.

Cathy Burack, whose son lives down the street, said it was upsetting to hear the news as a mother and grandmother.

“Shocked. Devastated. We came home from shopping and saw four police vehicles there, and we didn’t know what happened. I was just walking with my granddaughter and just found out,” Burack said.