KINGMAN, Ariz. (ABC15) — Three adults, including two parents, have been arrested in connection to a teen’s death and another teen's abuse in Kingman, Arizona.
On Feb. 25, sheriff's deputies in Mohave County (which borders Clark County to the southeast) were called to a home for reports of a runaway teen.
Authorities say 41-year-old Amber-Leah Valentine and 41-year-old Jon Imes reported their 16-year-old son had run away from home and was last seen the day before, on Feb. 24, around 10 a.m.
On Feb. 28, deputies were called to the scene of a death investigation where the body of a male was found wrapped in a blanket behind a stone wall. The person’s identity hasn’t been determined, and the Mohave County Medical Examiner’s Office is working to determine a cause of death.
On March 2, Valentine called MCSO and reported she had just freed her 14-year-old daughter, who was being held captive by her roommates, identified as 34-year-old Richard Pounds and a 39-year-old woman.
Valentine and her daughter were taken to a hospital after requesting medical attention.
Authorities say at that time Valentine indicated she and her husband, Imes, disposed of their 16-year-old son’s body and gave the location where the earlier death investigation occurred.
She allegedly admitted to MCSO that she lied to deputies when they reported him as a runaway and acknowledged he was already dead at the time of the report. While being questioned, MCSO says Imes also admitted to disposing of his son’s body and lying to deputies.
Valentine and Imes were booked into jail and are facing several charges, including the concealment of a dead body.
When detectives spoke with the 14-year-old daughter, she indicated she was shot in the eye with a BB gun by Pounds and mentioned other accounts of abuse in the home.
The Arizona Department of Child Safety was alerted about the situation and is investigating while the girl remains in a hospital.
The roommate, Pounds, was questioned about the incident involving the teen girl. He was arrested and is facing charges of child abuse and aggravated assault. The other roommate, a woman, was not arrested.
No further details have been released and an investigation remains ongoing.
