Phoenix police arrested a 26-year-old man on suspicion of killing his grandfather, found unresponsive in his apartment by a family member who had gone to check on him.
A 75-year-old man, identified as Fred Celaya, was found with "obvious trauma" on Sept. 9 at an apartment near 10th Street and Devonshire Avenue, according to police and court records. He was pronounced dead.
At the apartment, officers found a knife, multiple pairs of scissors with apparent blood, drugs and paraphernalia, court records stated.
The same day, Mateo Celaya called police from a Phoenix hospital and told them he had killed his grandfather after stabbing him with scissors at their residence, according to court records. He later told police that he had stabbed his grandfather multiple
times, was using drugs for several days and claimed to act in self-defense, court documents stated.
Mateo Celaya told police he awoke on Sept. 7, after having been awake for a week using methamphetamine. He said he and his grandfather had breakfast and then smoked methamphetamine.
He told police his grandfather later "rushed him" with a knife and a torch lighter, which he wrestled away, the records stated. The grandfather had told his grandson that he made a mess in the apartment and was taking advantage of him, which Mateo Celaya acknowledged to police as being true, according to the records.
He claimed that when his grandfather had a knife again, he kicked it away. Mateo Celaya told police he grabbed a pair of scissors from a nearby table, placed his grandfather in a chokehold and stabbed him between nine and 20 times, according to court records. He laid his grandfather on the floor next to a bed, and then he laid down in the bed and fell asleep.
Mateo Celaya said he later left the house with some belongings and his grandfather's cell phone, believing it had money, according to the records. After walking, he began to feel sick and called Phoenix Fire Department, which took him to a hospital.
"Mateo stated several days later he decided to call 911 and confess after witnessing his mother's reaction upon learning of her father's death," court records stated.
Officers arrested Mateo Celaya on suspicion of second-degree murder and he was booked into a Maricopa County jail, according to court records. He is being held on a $750,250 bond, and he is scheduled to appear in court again Sept. 16, online jail records stated.
Have a news tip? Contact The Arizona Republic and azcentral.com at newstips@arizonarepublic.com.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Man calls Phoenix police to say he killed his grandfather, records say
