Overview
- A 911 call placed by 37-year-old Kyle Collins prompted a Mesa police response to an apartment near 1st Street and Hibbert Street on Tuesday, July 21, when officers found 36-year-old Cierra Tellez unresponsive.
- First responders and officers observed significant injuries on Tellez that led homicide detectives to take over the investigation at the scene.
- Mesa detectives say evidence collected at the scene, witness interviews and preliminary observations from the Maricopa County Office of the Medical Examiner led them to develop probable cause and arrest Collins.
- Collins was booked on charges of first-degree murder and kidnapping and was being held on a bond above $1 million with a court date set for July 29; one report also lists a driving-with-suspended-license booking.
- Authorities have not released a detailed cause or motive for the death and continue forensic work, witness interviews and investigative steps that could shape formal charges and the upcoming court proceedings.