The murder suspect accused of killing and then burying a Maricopa couple in a six-foot grave behind his home says he was on methamphetamine at the time he killed his friends Tina and Michael Careccia, court documents show.
On July 1, Jose Ignacio Valenzuela Jr., 38, admitted his role in the slayings to a Pinal County Sheriff's Office investigator over the phone, according to court documents.
READ: Full police report
Valenzuela refused to come in for an interview with detectives. Records also reveal Valenzuela threatened to commit suicide with the murder weapon.
Thursday morning, Valenzuela was booked into the Pinal County Jail in Florence on two counts of first-degree murder. It's a jail Valenzuela is quite familiar with.
The couple's bodies were found buried in a grave Pinal County Sheriff Paul Babeu said measured six feet deep. The home is owned by Valenzuela's father and is located at 50669 West Papago Road in Maricopa, records show.
Court paperwork shows Valenzuela's account of the crime and indicates the couple, Valenzuela and his friend, Felix Rios Nunez were using methamphetamine in his home.
He told investigators he was "wrestling" with Michael Careccia and got his .22 magnum revolver and shot Tina and Michael. He then borrowed a backhoe from an acquaintance and buried the couple next to his house.
Sheriff Babeu says the dirt appeared as if it had not been disturbed because Valenzuela tried to cover his tracks by adding debris and other items to the top of it.
Babeu told reporters it wasn't a "makeshift grave, it was six feet deep." Valenzuela then claimed his friend Nunez left the house after driving the dead couple's car but returned a short time later and they, "discussed the story they were going to tell police," records show.
When Nunez was interviewed, he told investigators he was sleeping in his bedroom and heard a gunshot. He saw Michael Careccia struggling to get off the floor and told investigators Valenzuela was standing over Tina, who was lying on the floor pleading with him to calm down.
Nunez claims Valenzuela was pointing the gun at Tina and says he told him to give him the gun but instead contends Valenzuela pushed him away and told him to leave. Nunez says he was scared and ran from the house.
Whose account is true does not appear to be in question at this point, as Valenzuela is in jail and Nunez has not been booked on any charges and is listed as a witness.
What's more, Valenzuela has a lengthy criminal history dating back to 1995 when he was just 18 years old.
On October 7, 2002 he was cited for disorderly conduct and pleaded guilty shortly after. On October 21, 2003 he pleaded guilty to DUI. In 2004 another guilty plea for DUI.
On April 7, 2008 Valenzuela was arrested for assault. But more than a month later, he pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of disorderly conduct.
A few months later, Valenzuela was charged with assault but pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of disorderly conduct.
A 2009 domestic violence case reveals a jury found him guilty of assault and disorderly conduct. On March 23, 2010 Valenzuela was arrested for threatening and intimidating someone in addition to aggravated DUI. Court records show he was convicted of a felony in that case.
It's unclear if Valenzuela was still on probation, but as a convicted felon he's a prohibited possessor. He's not allowed to have a firearm.
He's being held on a $2 million bond.
