A 64-year-old Thatcher man has pleaded not guilty to two charges stemming from the Dec. 13 death of a woman with whom he lived.
The attorney for Bobby Benitez entered the plea during an arraignment held Monday at the Graham County Superior Court House in Safford.
Benitez is charged with first degree murder and aggravated assault in the death of Patty Nosie, 42.
According to the press release issued Dec. 13 by the Thatcher Police Department, 911 received a call that day at 4:23 a.m. from a man in the Quail Ridge subdivision claiming he had shot someone, and he wanted the police to respond. He reportedly also “indicated” to the 911 operator that he wanted to be shot by the police.
The release said police arrived to find a man, later identified as Benitez, at the scene armed with a handgun.
Benitez reportedly refused to drop the weapon, and after what was described as a brief standoff, he shot himself.
The release said the wound was not fatal, but it did not say where the injury was located. Officers took him into custody, whereupon he reportedly was given medical aid at the scene before being transported to Mount Graham Regional Medical Center.
Nosie’s body was found inside the residence, the release said. The release does not verify she also had been shot, although it did confirm her death was being investigated as a homicide.
Thatcher Police Chief Shaffen Woods confirmed Wednesday that the investigation into Nosie’s death is closed and that the Pima County Medical Examiner had ruled her death to be a homicide.
He said there are no other suspects in the case.
“It’s now in the hands of the courts,” he said.
Benitez is being held at Graham County Jail. His bond has been set at $5 million.
The Graham County Jail booking record for Benitez lists his home address as 1510 S. Roadrunner Lane in Thatcher.
A man who contacted this newspaper and identified himself as Benitez’s cousin said the home had been left to him by his father.
Thatcher PD’s Woods said Nosie and Benitez had been living together at the residence for “some time.”
A pretrial hearing in the case is scheduled for Feb. 27 at 8:30 a.m.
