Inset: George Randall (Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office). Background: The Arizona home where prosecutors say George Randall stabbed his mother in the neck during a “completely unprovoked” attack (AZFamily/YouTube).
In a shocking incident in Arizona, a 25-year-old man, George Randall, launched a sudden knife attack on his mother, stabbing her in the neck with a steak knife. Authorities report that Randall acted on a belief that his mother was “narcissistic” and indifferent to his emotions, catalyzing his violent actions.
Randall’s mother, who miraculously survived the assault, cried out for help when she awoke to find her son attacking her while she was asleep in a recliner. Her desperate cries, “He’s stabbing me!” and “He is killing me!” alerted other family members in the home, including Randall’s brother, sister, and father, according to an arrest affidavit accessed by Law&Crime.
Charged with attempted first-degree murder and aggravated assault, Randall confessed to the police that he had contemplated attacking his mother for several weeks before finally acting on these thoughts with a steak knife, as detailed by the Chandler Police Department.
Family members, whose identities remain undisclosed, revealed to investigators that Randall had never previously exhibited violent tendencies but had been displaying unusual behavior recently. The affidavit notes that Randall had been experiencing distress since losing his job a few months earlier and suffering an injury from exercising, contributing to his increased isolation and withdrawal.
Randall’s family members, who have not been publicly identified by authorities, told police that he “never had a violent outburst like this before, but he has been recently struggling with odd behavior,” according to the affidavit.
“George lost his job a few months ago and was injured from working out,” the affidavit says, citing statements the family provided. “This negatively affected his mood and demeanor, leaving him more withdrawn and isolated.”
Randall’s family said he had a “schizo or manic episode” the day before the stabbing, during which he was seen “speaking and responding” to a nonexistent voice. He began “frantically pacing around the house” during this alleged episode and stripped down to his boxers before lying down in a hallway, per the family and arrest affidavit.
Early the next morning, around 3 a.m., Randall asked his mom if they could talk.
“He wanted to share with her all the things he had been struggling with, including some stuff he had been hiding from the family,” the affidavit says. “So for the next few minutes, George bares his soul to her.”
After telling his mom how he has been feeling, Randall told police he became “upset to see the victim did not respond how he expected or wanted her to,” according to the affidavit. He allegedly said it “p—ed him off” how she “did not seem to care about him or his feelings.”
According to Randall, “She did not console him or give him the appropriate amount of care for his problems,” per the affidavit. “He describes her as narcissistic and always trying to get attention,” police report.
The mother allegedly fell asleep next to Randall on the recliner, which gave him the perfect opportunity to attack her, cops say, citing his statements to investigators.
“George explains he is so upset about his mother’s lack of care, he wants to intentionally harm her,” according to the affidavit. “So, he walks into the kitchen, pulls a red handled knife from the drawer and walks over to the living room recliner where the victim is asleep. He takes the knife, stabs and scratches the right side of her neck.”
Randall allegedly told police he purposely “targeted the neck specifically to try and wound the vital arteries there.” The mom woke up “while he is cutting her” and screams that “he is trying to kill her,” the affidavit says.
Randall’s father confronted him after the stabbing and the family notified police.
“She loved me and I stabbed her,” Randall told police after being taken into custody.
When asked about hearing voices or anything “mental health related,” Randall initially stated a demon named “Barricles” told him to carry out the attack. But when asked more about this and the demon, Randall allegedly admitted he was “making that up and he acted on his own,” per the affidavit.
“The reason he talked about voices or a demon was so maybe he could be put in a psych ward,” the affidavit alleges. “Several questions related to his mental health were asked to George. But he stated he understood stabbing his mother was illegal and wrong. He intentionally wanted the victim ‘to die’ and did not have any regret or remorse about his actions. In fact, George stated he did not care if the victim, his mother, was alive or dead.”
Randall went on to admit that he was “surprised how he did not feel bad” about stabbing his mother “and that it was ‘easy,’” according to the affidavit.
“There was no argument, no fight, no conflict leading up to this,” the affidavit concludes. “The victim posed no threat to George. She was asleep. George stabbed his sleeping mother with the hopes of killing her. He expressed no remorse or regret, and did not care if she lived or died.”
Randall is being held on a $1 million cash-only bond and is due back in court later this month.
