SALT LAKE CITY — An Idaho man accused of stabbing his mother in the back in northern Utah over the weekend is facing a first-degree murder charge.
Shawn Ryan Andrews, 28, of Pocatello, Idaho, was charged in 1st District Court Monday with murder plus three counts of obstructing justice, a second-degree felony.
Police were called to the North Pointe Apartments just after 3 p.m. on Saturday where they found the body of Debra Ann Andrews, 67.
A neighbor told investigators that she heard “a commotion and people fighting” and then “a thump” followed by someone yelling, “Call 911,” according to a probable cause affidavit filed in 1st District Court.
Shawn Andrews ran from the apartment after the stabbing to a nearby Walmart and began discarding items, including the knife, the charges state.
After police located Andrews, he initially told them that he heard his brother scream for help and then saw his mother had been stabbed. Andrews told detectives that his mother told him to run, so he took the knife and fled, the charges state.
“Upon further questioning Shawn then changed his story again and in doing so Shawn admitted that he had stabbed his mother in the back,” according to charging documents.
When asked why he stabbed his mother, “he gave several different explanations,” police wrote in their affidavit, but did not list any of the reasons.
According to Utah State Court records, in 2010 Andrews pleaded guilty to misdemeanor charges of trespassing and three counts of assault. His sentencing in that case was scheduled for Dec. 2 of this year.