Iowa Murder: Son Stabs Elderly Mother To Death

A man stabbed his elderly mother to death at their home in Bedford, Iowa.

According to local media reports, the Taylor County Communications Center received a 911 call reporting about a fatal stabbing Saturday (June 20) night. The deputies responded to a home on 108 Pearl Street in Bedford and found a woman unresponsive with stab wounds.

The Taylor County Sheriff's Department identified the victim as 62-year-old Penny Sue Godfirnon. She was later pronounced dead. A preliminary investigation revealed Godfirnon's son, identified as 32-year-old Christian Andrew May, as a prime suspect.

It was not clear as to what led the investigators to identify May as the suspect. The details about the evidence collected against him were not revealed. The motive behind the murder was also unclear.

May was later taken into custody. He was facing charges of first-degree murder and willful injury. He was booked into the Taylor County Jail.

This was an ongoing investigation and no further details were available at the time.

The Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation assisted the Taylor County Sheriff’s Department in the investigation.

In a similar stabbing incident reported from Florida earlier this month, a Polk County man who stabbed his mother was shot to death by a deputy. The man, identified as 36-year-old Phillip Dibenedetto, stabbed his mother in the chest. The suspect opened fire at the deputies during a confrontation. The deputy returned fire, fatally striking Dibenedetto. The woman was rushed to a nearby hospital with serious injuries. According to reports, no deputies suffered injuries during the shooting.

In another stabbing incident, a father from Mill Creek, Washington, helped his 12-year old son attack and stab his minor friend. The father, identified as 43-year-year-old Martinez D. Mitchell, who fled after the incident, later turned himself in to the police. The 12-year-old suspect was taken into custody. He was arrested and was investigated for first-degree assault. He was placed under house arrest after being released from detention. During the investigation, an officer noted that both boys were involved in egging one another in recent days.