Left inset: Emily Byles (GoFundMe). Right inset: Zachary Velasquez (Arizona Department of Corrections, Rehabilitation and Reentry). Background: The Glendale, Arizona, neighborhood where Byles lived when her fiancé, Velasquez, allegedly attacked her (KSAZ/YouTube).
An Arizona man allegedly drove scissors into his fiancée’s face just weeks before their planned wedding, telling police he believed he could hear her thoughts and that she was “talking s— about him.”
Zachary Velasquez, 31, faces aggravated assault and other charges stemming from the Oct. 5 attack on Emily Byles, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by Law&Crime. Byles was hospitalized in critical condition after suffering an injury to her vertebral artery that required surgery.
Police were called after Byles’ 11-year-old daughter dialed 911. The girl told dispatchers she was concerned about her parents after hearing “screaming from their bedroom,” the affidavit states.
Officers forced their way into the bedroom after hearing Byles shouting inside. She told police that Velasquez “was trying to kill her,” according to the affidavit.
“Upon entering the bedroom, officers observed the victim laying down on her back covered in blood,” the affidavit says. “The victim was observed to be holding scissors. Officers observed the defendant with no shirt on, red shorts, and his hands covered in blood.”
Speaking with local Fox affiliate KSAZ, Byles said Velasquez “wasn’t trying to just hurt me. He was trying to end my life,” the station reported.
“I’m completely mortified that someone who says he loves me and would protect me would literally try to murder me,” Byles said.
Byles told police that Velasquez was allegedly using methamphetamine and claimed to be a prophet who needed to kill her to save her. Velasquez told officers the incident began with “an argument” after Byles “saw pictures of females on the defendant’s phone,” according to the affidavit.
“The victim stated the defendant told her to lay her head down on the floor and go to sleep,” the affidavit alleges. “The victim stated the defendant told her if she got up again, he was going to kill her. The defendant also stated to the victim that it was God’s plan for her to die.”
According to police, Byles kept getting up, prompting Velasquez to pursue her with the scissors. Byles also said he struck her in the head approximately 30 times and stabbed her.
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“I felt like maybe I, like, died because it was like an out-of-body experience of going past Earth and past heaven,” Byles told KSAZ.
In a GoFundMe campaign, Byles described the extent of her injuries: “I was stabbed multiple times, my artery was cut, and I was severely beaten.”
She said the alleged attack also upended life for her and her daughters, forcing the family to remain separated while she recovered.
“Since that night, our home has been left unlivable, with too much blood to even clean up,” Byles said. “I lost my belongings, and my girls and I have been separated. Right now I am staying with a friend while I recover from stitches in my face, and my daughters are staying safely out of town with my sister while I heal.”
Byles told KSAZ the attack took place roughly a month before the couple’s planned wedding. She also alleged that Velasquez had threatened to kill her two daughters, but said her oldest daughter called 911 before he could attack the children.
“She’s very, very brave, and I couldn’t imagine what she’s going through,” Byles said of her daughter.
During an interview with police, Velasquez allegedly admitted placing Byles in a chokehold and punching her, but claimed he had acted in self-defense. He said Byles made him fear she was suicidal, leading him to hide knives and scissors from her.
“According to the defendant, the victim located one of the scissors,” the affidavit says. “The defendant stated the victim came at him with the knife, but he was able to turn the knife around and stab the victim in the neck. The defendant stated he removed the knife from the defendant’s neck and they both fell to the floor where they wrestled over the knife.”
Velasquez allegedly stabbed Byles again after taking possession of the knife. He also claimed that Byles was using methamphetamine that night.
“He’s going to get what he deserves,” Byles told KSAZ. “I’m sure.”
Velasquez has been charged in Maricopa County with aggravated assault involving a deadly weapon, disorderly conduct, intimidation and reckless handling of a weapon. His criminal record includes previous convictions for armed robbery with a deadly weapon and aggravated robbery.
