Six months after the mother of his children died from what he claimed was a drug overdose, an Ohio man is behind bars, accused of allegedly beating the victim so severely, she was “internally decapitated.”
A statement from Cincinnati Police confirms 25-year-old Mayzio Arnold was arrested and charged with murder on Wednesday.
Investigators allege he caused the injuries that led to the death of 24-year-old Deandrea Funchess. She was found unresponsive on February 15 in a Hartwell home.
According to court records obtained by WXIX, the alleged attack on Funchess, Arnold’s live-in girlfriend, was so intense, it caused the ligaments of her spinal column to be separated from the base of her skull — an injury known as atlanto-occipital dislocation.
It is alleged in the court filings that Arnold told authorities and Funchess’ family she had died from a drug overdose.
Still, the investigation into the death of Funchess, a nursing home worker, continued. Eventually, medical examiners determined the cause of her death was homicidal violence.
Arnold is being held on $750,000 bail. He has not entered a plea to the single charge against him, and it was unclear Friday who his attorney might be.
Bernadette Davis, Funchess’ mother, told WXIX she and Arnold had continued speaking after her daughter’s death. She had no idea he was a suspect until she learned of his arrest.
“It’s really a shocker right now to find out that he’s responsible for this,” Davis said, adding Arnold’s suggestion Funchess died of a drug overdose “never sat right with me.”
“From day one, it never made sense to me,” she added.
Davis told the station she wants people to know her daughter was not only the life of the party, but had turned her life around for her children’s sake.
The case is still being investigated, and those with any information about the attack that killed Funchess is urged to call 513-352-3542.
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