The screams of three children Monday evening led to the discovery of their strangled mother on the floor of their midtown Tucson apartment, a court filing says.
The grisly discovery happened shortly before 6 p.m. when a neighbor at a small apartment complex on North Dodge Boulevard near East Fifth Street told the property manager he could hear "kids screaming and crying" next door, according to an interim complaint filed in Pima County Justice Court.
The manager went to the apartment and found a man standing over a woman who was lying on the floor, the complaint said.
Their children — 7, 5 and 2 years old — were in the bathroom crying, the complaint says.
The body of Katlynne Roy, 28, showed signs of strangulation, Tucson police said.
Martine Mayorquin, 32, the father of the children, told police he choked Roy twice.
"The first time was for three minutes 'by a rear naked choke hold,'" the complaint says. "There was about a 2 minute break at which time (redacted) punched Martine in the mouth two times."
"He again did another 'rear naked chokehold' on (redacted) for about five minutes," the complaint continues.
"Both times escorted her to the ground during the chokes," the complaint says.
Mayorquin told police some scratches on his chest and back were from Roy.
Mayorquin was later arrested and booked in the Pima County jail on suspicion of first-degree murder and three counts of child abuse, both related to domestic violence, the news release said.
