As grandparents dead inside home, ‘nonchalant’ man lit marijuana cigarette while talking to cops: Police

As his grandparents lay slain inside the home, a Texas murder suspect “calmly” lit up a marijuana cigarette in front of cops, opened a soda can, and said nothing about the couple being dead, according to Austin police.

But officers say in a press statement and an arrest affidavit that family members had been trying to get in touch with the victims, Shari Mallory-Maxa, 74, and Anthony Maxa, 76, to no avail. One of them told police in a 911 call that Monaghan claimed the couple were inside the home feuding.

“They got into a big fight,” the defendant allegedly said. “They’re in their room stewing mad at each other; you don’t want to see it.”

More Law&Crime coverage: Man living with grandparents murdered them and left their bodies at home, deputies say

Relatives got suspicious, however, hence officers receiving at least two 911 calls after noon on Saturday, Sept. 21. They asked for a welfare check, and voiced concern because Monaghan refused to open the door to let them see the couple, police wrote.

One caller said that 911 had been recently called on Monaghan for “being ‘unstable.’” Police added that this caller was worried the suspect had hurt the couple. The caller also noted that Monaghan “did have a gun in the past that he shot it off.”

Responding officers spoke with several relatives, who said that they had been trying to contact the couple all morning, and that Monaghan had been taking stuff out of the house and placing it in the back of his grandmother’s car.

As officers approached the home, the suspect stepped out of the garage.

“Monaghan was nonchalant with officers,” police wrote. “He calmly sat down, lit a marijuana cigarette, and opened a soda can. As the officers inquired about the whereabouts of Monaghan’s grandparents, he acknowledged they were inside the residence but did not say anything about them being deceased.”

He allegedly said his grandfather had kicked him out.

But an officer entered the home to find the couple dead from apparent gunshot wounds in a hallway. Investigators later determined that Shari Mallory-Maxa had been shot three times, and Anthony Maxa was shot six times. Furthermore, the trajectory of some of the gunshots under them was “at a steep downward angle” as if the shooter had been standing over them, officers said. Stippling on the gunshot wound to the grandfather’s face indicated the gun muzzle had been less than three feet away, the affidavit stated.

There was fired cartridge cases on the floor near their bodies.

An officer found pistol ammunition in Monaghan’s pockets, as well as a long string of pearls in his back pocket and prescription bottles of the allergy and cold medication promethazine, which had been prescribed to his grandmother.

Detectives determined the grandparents bedroom appeared to have been ransacked.

“The dresser drawers were thrown to the floor, and empty jewelry boxes were on the floor and the bed,” they wrote.

In Monaghan’s bedroom, they found a .380 caliber handgun and several rounds of ammo, officers wrote.

In the vehicle, police found “dozens of boxes of women’s jewelry.”

“In the garage of the residence, where Monaghan had indicated to Officer Richer all of his property had been staged, Detective Jones located several more bags containing jewelry, blank checks belonging to the victims, and additional small caliber ammunition,” police wrote.

Monaghan is charged with capital murder and was locked up in the Travis County Jail.

From police:

Anyone with any information is asked to contact the Austin Police Department at 512-974-TIPS. You may submit your tip anonymously through the Capital Area Crime Stoppers Program by visiting austincrimestoppers.org or by calling 512-472-8477. A reward up to $1,000 may be available for any information that leads to an arrest.

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