Father Accused Of Killing Teen Beat Her With Pole, Mallet: Court

TINLEY PARK, IL — Court officials have released new details in the killing of Tinley Park teenager Mia Maro. Maro's father, Mohammed Almaru, was charged with first degree murder in connection with the incident and denied bail Thursday.

Information from a court document detailed Mia's last few days. The teenager's aunts told police Mia was set to go to Victor J. Andrew High School's prom on Friday, but Almaru decided the day before he did not want her to go.

According to police, Almaru had picked out Mia's dress for the occasion but later changed his mind because he "did not trust her."

A few days prior, Mia's aunt was at the Almaru house to take care of Mia's mother. The mother, Audrey Jorgenson, suffered a traumatic brain injury under three years ago that left her in a wheelchair and in need of full-time care. Up until her death, family said, Mia was one of her mother's primary caretakers.

While the aunt, who prosecutors named as Randa Almaru, Mohammed's sister, was waiting for Mia to come home from school and take over Jorgenson's care so Randa could leave for an appointment, Mia texted her aunt and told her she had accidentally rear-ended another car while driving her father's vehicle.

Mia's texts to Randa expressed worry that her father was "going to kill her" and "beat her ass," prosecutors said. Randa left once Mia returned did not see her niece alive again.

On Friday, another one of Mia's aunts — Linda Maro — arrived at the Almaru house and watched after Jorgenson all day. During that time, Maro did not hear from Mia and tracked her phone to see if Almaru had decided to allow his daughter to attend the prom. According to Maro, Mia's location changed multiple times through the FindMyiPhone app.

The 17-year-old's phone turned up in Warrenville, Arlington Heights and Tinley Park on Friday, but did not show her in Chicago, where prom was taking place. Linda left the house and did not see her niece that night.

On Saturday, Linda drove by the house again and texted Mia multiple times. This same day, Mia's older brother received a text from their father asking him if he knew whether or not Mia was involved with a boy. The brother told his father he did not know and Almaru did not respond to the son's subsequent questions asking why he wanted to know.

On Sunday, multiple days after neither Randa or Linda heard from Mia, the pair reached out to Almaru who told the women he would have Mia respond to them within an hour. After a few hours passed, Randa showed up to the home where she told police she was greeted by a nervous Almaru who asked Randa to sit with Audrey while he "finished some paperwork."

After sitting with Audrey for a while, Randa told police she started to hear "gurgling sounds" coming from Almaru's room. When Randa opened the door, prosecutors said she saw Mia's body on the ground, covered in a blanket. Next to the teenager was a bloody Almaru with his arm draped across her body.

Earlier that day, investigators said Almaru had sent a series of texts to one of his sons, admitting to the crime. In the texts, Almaru attached an image of him holding a physical letter. The letter blamed Mia's mom for making Mia believe her father did not care for her and also admitted to going through the teenager's phone and finding messaged that proved the girl was not truthful to her father, he said.

"I lost my mind went out of control and beat the [expletive] out of her and accidental hit her head," the letter said. "Then I ... woke up next to her cold body."

Randa called police, who later recovered a bent metal pole and a rubber mallet that medical experts said contained traces of Mia's blood, scalp and hair.

Mohammed Almaru was denied bail Thursday. Federal and state prosecutors are currently working together on charges, officials said.