Police learned of the killing of a young Tucson mother from a tipster who said he or she had been asked to help clean the crime scene, court records show.
Eric Dewayne Hill, 36, told the tipster he killed his girlfriend and buried her in the desert on the South Side, according to a Pima County Justice Court document released Friday.
Hill asked the unidentified person to help him clean a blood stain in the apartment he shared with Angela Gayden, 21, who was identified as the homicide victim, the document says.
When police officers searched the apartment, they found a 2- to 3-foot-wide blood stain that had soaked through the underlying carpet pad and plywood floor, according to a probable-cause statement filed in Pima County Justice Court.
Hill was booked into Pima County jail Thursday on suspicion of first-degree murder in connection with Gayden's death, said Sgt. Mark Robinson, a Tucson Police Department spokesman.
People are also reading…
The couple had a history of domestic violence, the court record shows.
Although the probable-cause statement referred to Gayden as Hill's girlfriend, Robinson said that might not have been the case, but he wouldn't reveal further details about their relationship on Friday.
"Even though an arrest has been made, it's still very early in the investigation, and we're still working to determine what led up to this crime," he said.
Hill and Gayden did live together and had a 3-month-old son together, Robinson said.
The child was unharmed and was being cared for by Gayden's mother, Venus Robinson, according to Homicide Survivors, a organization that assists grieving families.
Gayden was very family- oriented and wanted to become a registered nurse, her mother said in a statement released Friday evening.
"She was very independent," Gayden's mother said. "Angela had a lot of friends, some as far back from her days in day care."
Gayden was recently attending Pima Community College, her mother said.
Venus Robinson said she believes that her daughter was the victim of domestic violence.
Having been a domestic- violence victim herself, Venus Robinson told her daughter that "if the relationship wasn't good, to move on." The victim's mother added that if any woman is in physically or emotionally abusive relationships that she get out because "it will not get any better."
Gayden's body was found at about 2:30 p.m. Thursday near Interstate 10 and South Wilmot Road — one day after police got a tip from a person who said a woman might be missing and she may have been the victim of foul play, Robinson said.
The caller did not know the woman's name, but said a man named "Eric" may have left the woman's body in the desert, according to police.
Within hours of getting that tip, police had identified both Gayden and Hill, Robinson said.
The initial informant provided only sketchy details, and extensive police work was required to piece together more details of the crime, Robinson said.
Police searched Gayden and Hill's residence in the 100 block of West Navajo Road, near West Fort Lowell Road and North Stone Avenue, and found forensic evidence that a violent crime had occurred there, Robinson said.
Robinson would not say, but the interim complaint notes a large pool of blood was found.
Police took Hill into custody at about 2 a.m. Thursday after finding addresses he was associated with, Robinson said.
Gayden's body was found a little more than 12 hours later during a ground and air search.
An autopsy will determine the cause of Gayden's death and when the killing may have occurred, but based on information investigators believe that the slaying occurred on Jan. 4 or Jan. 5, Robinson said.
Gayden was last seen with her baby and was on her way to meet with Hill, according to the court documents.
The documents say that day was a Friday, but they do not specify the date,
Police haven't released any information about whether a weapon has been recovered in connection with the slaying or whether one was even used.
Robinson urged anyone with information about the crime to contact law enforcement.
"There may have been other people involved in this crime who are afraid to come forward, and we're asking anyone with information about this couple — the victim and the suspect — to call 911 or 88-CRIME," he said.
Aid fund
• A fund has been set up to assist the family of Angela Gayden. Contributions can be sent to: Homicide Survivors, Angela Gayden Fund, 32 N. Stone Ave. Suite 1408, Tucson, AZ 85701
