Inset: Troy Yazzie (Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office). Background: The apartments in Phoenix, Ariz., where Troy Yazzie allegedly beat his roommate with a construction helmet (Google Maps).
A 31-year-old Arizona man allegedly smashed in his 76-year-old roommate‘s head and face with a construction helmet during an “argument” over an unpaid $50 electric bill. The victim later died after being hospitalized with “multiple facial fractures” and “brain bleeds,” cops say.
Troy Yazzie was charged this week in Pima County with murder for the death of his roommate, who has not been publicly identified or named by police.
The roommate died in the hospital earlier this month due to “medical complications” that stemmed from blunt force trauma injuries he suffered during Yazzie’s alleged attack, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by Law&Crime.
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Yazzie went after the man with a construction helmet on April 30 during a “verbal argument” at their home in Phoenix, police say. The victim allegedly told police that Yazzie “had stolen money intended for the electric bill” and that’s what they were arguing about.
“The victim stated he had given Troy $50 to pay the electric bill,” the affidavit explains. “When the bill went unpaid, he asked Troy to return the money. Troy became angry and struck him multiple times in the face with a white construction helmet.”
The victim called police after the alleged attack and was transported to the hospital “due to the severity of his injuries.” He remained there for more than two months before dying, cops say.
“During the 911 call, the victim provided information to dispatch, and in the background, a male voice could be heard asking, ‘Are you calling the cops?'” the affidavit says.
Yazzie allegedly did not make any claims that the assault was “due to self-defense,” according to the affidavit. “Troy said he realized the victim was older, and said he realized striking someone older could cause serious injury or death.”
Yazzie is being held on a $1 million bond. He faces a charge of second-degree murder.
The post 31-year-old man uses a construction helmet to murder his 76-year-old roommate during fight over unpaid $50 electric bill: Police first appeared on Law & Crime.
