N.M. man arrested after girlfriend found dead with skull fracture, single bullet casing near her body
03/09/2023 11:50 am PST
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (TCD) -- A 43-year-old man was arrested and charged in connection with the death of his 45-year-old girlfriend, who reportedly died from blunt force trauma.
According to a news release from the Bernalillo County Sheriff’s Office, on March 5 at around 9 a.m., deputies responded to the 1900 block of Coe Road SW, where they found the victim, Micaella Novick, deceased inside the home. The Office of the Medical Investigator determined she died from blunt force trauma.
The Albuquerque Journal reports that Novick showed signs of a skull fracture. Investigators reportedly located a single spent bullet casing near her body, as well as broken glass and other household items strewn over the floor.
According to the Albuquerque Journal, Novick’s boyfriend Jarrett Attel suffered a scratch on his eyebrow, bruising to his left eye, and bruises on his knuckles. He reportedly told deputies he drank with Novick the night before, breaking his six years of sobriety.
Attel called 911 after he tried to wake up his girlfriend and saw blood coming out of her nose, the Albuquerque Journal reports.
When asked about his injuries, Attel reportedly could not recall how he got them and said he "fell a lot."
Deputies arrested Attel, and he’s being held in the Bernalillo County Jail on a charge of open murder.
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