SPOKANE, Wash. – A Washington state woman is accused of killing her adult son and then “cutting his head off with a saw” before disposing of his body, authorities said Tuesday.
Christine Diane Catelli, 58, was charged with murder in the second degree, according to a news release from the Spokane County Sheriff’s Office. Deputies said Catelli reportedly confessed to killing Chase Catelli, 35, KREM-TV reported.
According to the sheriff’s office, deputies responded after receiving a call on Saturday at about 8:50 p.m. PST from a man who claimed to be Christine Catelli’s brother. William Catelli told deputies that his sister had confessed to shooting her son in June, and the woman reportedly confirmed that information when interviewed by detectives.
Christine Catelli led investigators to an area near Rock Lake in Whitman County, where detectives found a large, black plastic bag that contained human remains, the sheriff’s office said.
According to The Spokesman-Review newspaper of Spokane, Catelli told investigators that she shot her son “five or six times in the head and chest” because she “didn’t want him to suffer.” After fatally shooting her son, Catelli reportedly said that she cut off her son’s head with a saw and dumped his body under a bridge in Whitman County, KREM reported.
William Catelli reportedly told deputies that his sister had been under a lot of stress and had struggled with a substance abuse addiction, but believed she had been making progress. According to court documents, Christine Catelli had been staying with her brother in Sequim, located in Clallam County northwest of Seattle. The man convinced his sister to report the crime and drove her back to Spokane County, the Spokesman-Review reported.
Christine Catelli made her initial appearance Tuesday in Spokane County District Court, according to the newspaper.
She remained in the Spokane County Jail, with bail set at $1.5 million, according to Spokane County online booking records.
