KINGMAN, Ariz. – The parents of a 16-year-old have been arrested after the teen’s body was found wrapped in a blanket and left behind a stone wall in Kingman, Ariz.
Amber-Leah Valentine, 41, and John Imes, 41, were arrested and charged with abandonment of a dead body.
According to the Mohave County Sheriff’s Office, the couple reported the teen missing on Feb. 25, saying he was last seen around 10 a.m. on Feb. 24.
On Feb. 28, a body believed to be that of a teenage boy was found wrapped in a blanket and placed behind a stone wall.
Anita Mortenson, public information officer for the Mohave County sheriff’s office, told KTVK that the body was found in a “very traveled area.”
“It’s a very traveled location, so for them to put the body there, it was very strange ‘cause that is a very, very traveled area with a lot of traffic,” Mortensen said.
On Thursday, police received a call from Valentine saying that she had just freed her 14-year-old daughter from roommates who had kidnapped her.
Valentine said that Richard Pounds, 34, and Shioban Gujda, 39, had held her daughter captive and that she had freed her daughter, but both needed medical care.
Valentine confessed at the hospital that she and Imes had placed her son’s body against the stone wall before telling police the teen had run away.
Imes also admitted he had helped move the body and lied to police about his son’s disappearance.
At the hospital, the 14-year-old told police that she had been shot in the eye by Pounds who used a pellet gun and told police about additional abuse she said had occurred at home.
The sheriff’s office and the Bullhead City SWAT team took Pounds and Gujda into custody.
Pounds was arrested after questioning by the sheriff’s office, KTVK reported. He was booked on charges of felony child abuse and aggravated assault. After questioning, Gujda was released pending further investigation.
Results of the autopsy on the body have not been released.
