Man in custody after woman found beheaded in Shakopee
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UPDATE: Man charged with murder after woman found beheaded in Shakopee
A 42-year-old man was taken into custody after a woman died from stab wounds in Shakopee.
On Wednesday at around 2:31 p.m., the Shakopee Police Department responded to the intersection of Fourth Avenue and Spencer Street on a report that a body without a head was pulled out of a vehicle and a man was walking through an alley. When officers arrived, they found the body lying next to a vehicle with a head nearby, according to a search warrant application.
The affidavit also states officers found what appeared to be a sheath for a large knife along with a knife, shirt and bloody shoes in a trash can in the alley.
Police said 55-year-old America Mafalda Thayer, of Shakopee, was pronounced dead at the scene.
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"I thought I saw a body on the pavement, but I wasn’t overly sure," said Carol Erath, who lives nearby. "It’s shocking, I just couldn’t believe somebody would be so brutal to somebody else."
The department said officers quickly apprehended 42-year-old Alexis Saborit, of Shakopee, on suspicion of second-degree murder. He is being held in the Scott County Jail pending charges.
At this time, investigators believe the suspect knew the victim and this wasn’t a random act.
Saborit has a lengthy past, including a significant history involving alcohol, violence and domestic abuse.
Investigators from the Shakopee Police Department are investigating the death. The Minnesota Bureau of Criminal Apprehension processed the crime scene.
Shakopee Police Chief Jeff Tate told 5 EYEWITNESS NEWS he is "incredibly disappointed" that cellphone video from the aftermath of the incident was shared on social media.
Neighbors agreed that it’s something that should’ve never been shared online.
"To have something like this posted online for the world to see is not a good message at all to put out," said Randall Boham, who lives nearby.
"This person was somebody’s daughter and somebody’s mother," Erath said.
Thursday afternoon, members of the Hosanna Church in Shakopee went door to door checking on neighbors, knowing a life lost at this corner affects an entire community.
"We just wanted to come out and just be a church that responds to hard situations that happen like this in our community," said Aaron Davitch, from Hosanna Church Shakopee. "Neighbors who we have encountered who have been out have said I hope you’re out here praying for the neighborhood or I’m so grateful you’re out here praying for us."