Crime

Ariz. Man, 21, Accused of Killing 5-Year-Old Niece, 16-Year-Old Sister and His Parents

Richard Wilson is facing four first-degree murder charges for the deaths of his parents, 16-year-old sister and 5-year-old niece

By

Charmaine Patterson

Published on September 7, 2022 12:31 AM

Search Facebook May be an image of 1 person, standing and text that says 'PINAL COUNTY ADULT DETN Number: 3591552 CENTER' Pinal County Sheriff's Office reptdSonos8 d e s 37 a l2 a 9 M y t 93 P a05 7lhf c e 1 r Y lg3 2 8iu t 5 mh 2 acg : 05 · "Yesterday, a terrible tragedy hit our community," shares Sheriff Mark Lamb. On 9/4/22 around 1:45pm, PCSO received a frantic 911 call from a home near W. Rosemead Dr. and N. Bel Air Rd. outside of Casa Grande. When Deputies arrived, they discovered four people had been murdered in the home by a member of their family, 21-year-old Richard Wilson. The victims are identified as 47-year-old Richard Wilson, the suspect's father, 50 -year-old Ellen Otterman, the suspect's mother, 16-year-old Rudy Wilson, the suspect's sister, and 5-year-old Renaya White, the suspect's niece. Wilson was still on scene when Deputies arrived, and was arrested. Has been booked into the Pinal County Jail on four counts of 1st degree murder and is being held on a $2.5 Million bond. "This act of depraved violence will have long lasting effects on all those who knew this family," said Sheriff Mark Lamb. " While nothing will bring their loved ones back, I send my prayers and support to everyone affected." This incident is still under investigation. See less Comments Pat N Shannon Dickinson Prayers for the family and officials that have to deal with this horrible situation. Reply1d Craig Adams 300,000,000 people in the United States. Let’s say 10% aren’t going to play nice. What do we do, build more and more prisons? I don’t know what the hold up is with the death penalty. Is it the DA? The judge? The governor? Some people don’t need to be h… See more Reply1d Jen Erickson Prayers for the first responders that had to process the scene, family members, friends and neighbors. Reply1d Lara Windbringer He has dead eyes... if you ever see that in a person, stear clear. The eyes are the window to the soul. Demonic possession is a very real thing. Reply1d Virginia Choate So evil and wicked. I’m having a very hard time trying to digest what happened.It was my son the First Sherriff Deputy officer that arrived on the scene witness what had happened and took the suspect into custody.I can’t begin to imagine how he fee… See more Reply20hEdited Danna Thompson Segura I’ll just say it. If he was that miserable, why didn’t he just take himself out. He wouldn’t care about anything else after that. 😡 Reply1d 6 of 614 — Photo: Pinal County Sheriff's Office

A 21-year-old Arizona man is charged with the murder of multiple immediate family members.

The Pinal County Sheriff's Office said in a statement Monday via Facebook that Richard Wilson is in custody for the death of his father, also named Richard Wilson, 47; mother Ellen Otterman, 50; sister Rudy Wilson, 16; and niece Renaya White, 5.

The police department "received a frantic 911 call" from a home near Casa Grande around 1:45 p.m. local time, the statement shared. It was later revealed to multiple news outlets that Rudy called police.

When officers got there, they found four dead bodies inside a family member's home, the PCSO said.

The suspect "was still on scene when Deputies arrived, and was arrested," the statement said. He is being held at the Pinal County Jail on four counts of first-degree murder. His bond is set at $2.5 million.

"Yesterday, a terrible tragedy hit our community," Sheriff Mark Lamb said in the statement. "This act of depraved violence will have long lasting effects on all those who knew this family. While nothing will bring their loved ones back, I send my prayers and support to everyone affected."

Court documents obtained by Fox 10 say that when police arrived they saw a man exiting a trailer near the home.

"As deputies approached the suspect, he stated 'I'm over here, take me to jail,' " the court filing read, per the outlet, identifying the suspect as Richard Wilson IV.

Documents also said, according to Fox 10, "All subjects appeared to have suffered blunt force trauma injuries, and had injuries to their neck area consistent with being cut with an edged weapon."

"It was just scary knowing that this could happen next door," neighbor Joy Moreno told ABC15, adding that police cars were seen in the area until around 3:30 a.m.

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Expressing her shock, another neighbor, Wanda Hamilton, told a local CBS affiliate, "Disbelief, this doesn't happen out here. I can't believe that, not him. I talked to that kid all the time."

She added that the suspect lived down the street with his grandparents but often went to his parents' home to take care of their horses. His family lived in the home for five years, she said.

"You don't see arguments over there or anything like that. He seemed like he cared for all of them, he never had anything bad to say to me about any of them," Hamilton told the news station.

Moreno also shared with the CBS station that the 5-year-old victim "was always outside playing. We always heard her laughing, she seemed like a very happy kid."

Police sources told ABC15 that the murder weapon was a knife and that Rudy tried to call for help.

"The line disconnected during her call, and ultimately she became one of the victims as well," said Chief Deputy Matthew Thomas.

Police did not share any potential motive. The suspect's next court date is scheduled for Sept. 13, per his booking record. It is not clear if he has a lawyer to comment.

The PCSO did not immediately respond to PEOPLE's request for comment.

The Casa Grande Elementary School District mourned the loss in a Facebook statement.

"Dear CGESD Families, It is with a heavy heart that I inform you a student and staff member were tragically killed over the weekend," it wrote in part, adding that counseling will be available. It did not name which of the victims attended and worked for the school.