A Connecticut man held in the brutal stabbing death of his mother has been placed on suicide watch after police said he confessed to the murder and showed no remorse.
Prosecutors allege Robert Owen Rankin, 22, used a fire poker, buck knife and his hands to kill his mother, 45-year-old Margaret Rohner.
Rankin was arrested Thursday after his father called 911 telling dispatchers “my son killed my ex-wife.” Rank allegedly cut open his mother’s abdomen and began removing organs, saying he was “looking for a baby.”
When police arrived Rankin raised his hands and surrendered reportedly telling troopers he had a knife in his pocket and that he had used it to kill his mother, the New Haven Register reported.
The suspect allegedly told police he had begun planning to kill his mother on Thursday morning when he woke up. The New Haven Register reports Rankin told police he first tried to strangle her with his bare hands, and then stabbed her in the neck with a fire poker and buck knife.
Rankin allegedly cut open his mother’s abdomen and began removing organs because “I wanted to see if there was a baby in her stomach.”
Rankin reportedly told police he killed his mother “because she is pretty much responsible for everything that has gone wrong in my life,” the New Haven Register reported.
The suspect said he then took a shower and went to walk his dog before contacting his father, the New Haven Register reported.
“I just want you to know that she put up a damn good fight. She is a strong woman. I give her credit for that,” Rankin reportedly told police.
He is being held on $1 million bond and is due in court Feb. 4.
Click for more from the New Haven Register.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
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