Thomas Wallace is accused of involvement in the death of a Phoenix man. Neighbors had not seen the victim for several weeks before police discovered his body.
PHOENIX — >>Editor’s note: This story contains graphic detail that may not be appropriate for all audiences. Viewer discretion recommended.
Longtime neighbors recall a man whose body was found dismembered and decomposing in his Phoenix home.
A wellness check led police to the grisly discovery Nov. 1 near 30 and Campbell Avenues.
Neighbors identified the victim as Kenneth Peterson, 80.
“It’s sad that this happened to him because he didn’t deserve this,” Ruby Lowry said. “He was a good neighbor. He would help anyone. He would go help at the church.
Lowry said she and Peterson had been neighbors since the ’70s.
But even those who had met Peterson recently spoke of him in glowing terms.
“When we first moved in, he introduced himself to us, getting to know us, and everything,” Monica Moreno said. His family moved to the neighborhood four years ago.
“He would always bring my kids fruit that he left on any kind of stuff he had. Candy sometimes, because he said he was diabetic, so he brought that stuff to our house,” Moreno added.
Macabre discovery
Phoenix police conducted a welfare check after the family reported they had not heard from the victim in three to four weeks, according to court documents.
When officers arrived at the house and walked inside, they were greeted by “a strong, foul smell”. Later, they found two black trash bags in a bedroom.
Records say that when police opened them, they found Peterson’s decomposing body.
Investigators found blood splatters on the living room ceiling, walls and furniture. They also found traces of blood that had been cleaned from the floor.
Police said severed body parts were found in a pile of blankets that were in a laundry basket and in stacked layers of laundry.
The victim’s family told investigators that Peterson befriended Ramona Gonzalez in 2020 and moved in with him last year.
“She would have relapsed with illicit drugs, would have pawned [the victims] possessions and regularly steals his vehicle,” court documents said.
Records said Gonzalez moved out in February of this year, but returned with Peterson in March.
Then in April, police said a male friend, Thomas Wallace, had also moved into the victim’s home.
During their investigation into the murder, detectives learned that Peterson’s truck was missing. They found him on November 3 at a motel Wallace had booked, where Gonzalez was also staying. Both were arrested.
“She said she wasn’t staying home with the victim because of Thomas. [Wallace] behavior,” the court records said.
Police say Gonzalez admitted to breaking into the victim’s home on September 30 because she was “worried” about him and found Peterson dead, but did not contact police.
“Ramona said Thomas inferred he killed the victim,” the documents state.
On Oct. 28, investigators learned that Wallace and Gonzalez were seen on surveillance video pawning a box with a chainsaw, hedge and camera.
Court records say these items were later recovered and “a smell of decay emanated from the box when it was opened.”
Police found “torn flesh, ligaments and biological material” in the chainsaw.
Thomas Wallace has been jailed and faces multiple charges including second degree murder and concealment of body.
His bail was set at $1,000,000 in cash.
Ramona Gonzalez has also been warned and faces charges of theft and fraud.
“It’s scary how close it was to my home”
“It’s really sad,” Moreno said. “They took advantage of a nice, nice guy. To do something like that is wrong.”
It is not known when Kenneth Peterson was murdered.
Moreno said she would remember him as “a loving and caring person”.
“To sit there and see my kids, no relationship at all…and want to give us everything he had plus and [my] kids, that was a lot to me,” she said.
Moreno and his family light candles to honor their neighbor’s memory.
Detectives are still working to determine what led to this incident, police said.
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