The Arizona man accused of murdering a young woman on a Phoenix hiking trail in April, shortly after his release from prison, will get the death penalty if prosecutors get their way, ABC15 revealed Friday.
The Maricopa County Attorney’s Office is seeking to put 22-year-old Zion Teasley to death for allegedly ambushing and fatally stabbing 29-year-old Lauren Heike, the victim’s family told ABC15.
Grieving parents Jeff and Lana Heike wrote in a statement that they “support” the prosecutors’ decision to get justice for their daughter, and expressed how their “hearts continue to break over her life being cut short by the violent actions of another.”
The woman’s body was found April 29 outside a neighborhood near Scottsdale Road and Mayo Boulevard, just south of Loop 101, a semi-beltway looping around the Phoenix Metropolitan Area in central Arizona, AZ Family.com reported.
Lauren Heike’s body was discovered April 29 on a trail near a neighborhood in the Phoenix metropolitan area, Breitbart News previously reported.
Court documents obtained by the New York Post say Heike was chased down by Teasley before he allegedly stabbed her 15 times in the back and the chest.
The suspect was seen fleeing the scene in footage shared by Phoenix Police in an effort to find him.
Teasley was reportedly located and arrested at his nearby apartment complex several days later after his DNA and cell phone location data linked him to the murder.
Upon examining her body, Heike’s injuries appeared to be consistent with a pocketknife that Teasley possessed.
The suspect had been let out of prison just five months prior to the attack after being convicted of armed robbery and disorderly conduct, ABC15 reported.
Local authorities also said Teasley had recently been fired from his job for getting “aggressive toward female employees” and was “suspected of stealing merchandise.”
The 22-year-old had also reportedly told homicide investigators that he wanted to look like Heike, suggesting he could have been stalking her before the ambush.
However, he pleaded not guilty to his first-degree murder charge in May.
“We know that our journey through the criminal justice system is just beginning, but we will be there every step of the way to ensure that Lauren receives justice,” Heike’s heartbroken parents wrote.
They added that they “want Lauren to be remembered for the beautiful and kind person that she was. We have hope and find joy in the knowledge that we will someday be reunited with Lauren.”
Teasley’s next court date was not immediately announced.