Thomas Wallace: Arizona man butchers Air Force vet before pawning off chainsaw covered in human remains
Warning: Graphic content, readers’ discretion advised
PHOENIX, ARIZONA: A deranged Arizona man pawned off a chainsaw he used to murder and butcher his roommate with human remains still stuck in the blades. Officials said Thomas Wallace, 58, slaughtered an 80-year-old Air Force veteran, stuffed his remains into trash bags, and then wrapped them in linens in a Phoenix home they shared. The vet’s family who had not heard from him for about a month, called authorities to conduct a welfare check last week.
Police came across a 'foul odor' after they forced their way into the home and reportedly discovered trash bags dumped with body parts and the victim’s severed head among linens, FOX 10 Phoenix reported. Blood was spattered on walls, the ceiling and furniture. Police tracked the victim’s missing pickup truck to a motel where they arrested Wallace and Ramona Gonzalez. Gonzalez also lived in the apartment for a while, struggled with substance abuse and also pawned off the victim’s possessions.
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The exact time of the victim's death is not known till now and Gonzalez has denied any involvement in the grisly killing. As per the reports of KPTV, she and her friend found blood and the body in the home on September 30. Wallace and Gonzalez are accused of selling the unnamed victim’s possessions last month which included the 10-inch saw and a camera bag that still contained the dead man’s business cards. Court records alleged that they took in $50 for the items.
A neighbor described the victim as “a good neighbor” who would help anybody. “It’s a sad thing to happen to him. He didn’t deserve that,” Ruby Lowry told KPTV. “I hope they get what they deserve because he would help anybody. That’s probably why he had them over there.” Wallace was suspected of second-degree murder and slapped with charges for concealing the body and trafficking the stolen items. He was held on $1 million cash bond. Gonzalez was booked into jail on fraud and theft charges.
MEAWW previously reported that suitcases containing the remains of two young children inside it were allegedly moved between storage locations for a whole year before they were found, according to the police. A family from Manurewa in Auckland bid in an auction and won them subsequently. The remains of a five-year-old boy and an eight-year-old girl aged were discovered by a terrified family in Auckland on August 11, after they won the suitcases in a storage auction. As per authorities, the primary school-aged children had been inside the suitcase for three to four years.
According to reports, the suitcases were moved between different units in the same Safestore facility in the second half of 2021. Upon inspection, dead flies and rats were found inside the unit but no reports have emerged regarding an unusual smell, according to sources speaking to New Zealand news website Stuff.