Authorities in Wisconsin allege that Rodolfo Gonzalez, 39, fatally stabbed his mother multiple times before covering her head with cat litter and setting fire to the apartment where she lay dying.
Background
The New London Police Department responded to a fifth-floor apartment fire on Sunday. Firefighters discovered smoke pouring from the residence and extinguished three separate blazes inside the unit. Upon entering, they found an unresponsive woman suffering from multiple stab wounds to her neck on her bed, according to a probable cause arrest affidavit obtained by Fox affiliate WLUK.
Investigators later determined through autopsy findings that the victim died from multiple sharp force injuries to the neck. Crucially, forensic evidence revealed she was already deceased when Gonzalez allegedly set the fires—there was no soot in her lungs and no carbon dioxide detected in her blood, detectives noted in the affidavit.
Gonzalez had been living with his mother at the apartment complex located approximately 40 miles west of Green Bay. Court records indicate he was already facing attempted murder charges connected to what authorities described as a "violent incident" involving his mother that occurred in February.
According to WLUK, Gonzalez had previously been deemed incompetent to stand trial for those earlier charges, which remained pending at the time of Sunday's killing.
The Investigation
Detectives reviewed video surveillance footage from the apartment complex that allegedly captured Gonzalez entering the building while holding what appeared to be a book around the time first responders were dispatched to the fire scene. Officers later located him sitting on a bench near an elementary school several hours after the blaze was extinguished.
When authorities attempted to take him into custody, Gonzalez allegedly resisted arrest and required physical restraint using leg shackles to subdue him, according to the affidavit. During the arrest, officers recovered two lighters and a Bible from his person.
The Waupaca County Medical Examiner performed an autopsy that confirmed multiple sharp force injuries to the victim's neck caused her death. The investigation remains ongoing as detectives work to establish a motive for the killing.
Key Takeaways
- Rodolfo Gonzalez, 39, has been charged with first-degree intentional homicide, recklessly endangering safety, arson, mutilating a corpse, and resisting an officer
- His mother was found with multiple stab wounds to her neck on her bed; cat litter covered her head and fires had been set between her legs
- Autopsy findings indicate she was already dead when the blazes were ignited—no soot in lungs or CO2 in blood
- Gonzalez was previously charged with attempted murder following a February incident involving his mother and deemed incompetent to stand trial
- He remains detained at Waupaca County Jail on $1 million bond; his next scheduled court appearance is August 4