Arizona man charged after woman found buried in shallow desert grave
Police allege suspect took victim on a premeditated date before killing her
Domonic Rodolico has been charged with first-degree murder after 21-year-old Arianna Jones was found buried in a shallow grave in a remote Arizona desert, with investigators alleging he lured her on a carefully planned date before killing her.
According to an arrest affidavit, Rodolico took Jones to a Harkins movie theatre before driving her to a secluded area near Lake Pleasant in Maricopa County on July 5, where police believe the killing took place.
Police allege date was part of a premeditated murder
Investigators said Rodolico visited the desert location several times before picking Jones up from her apartment, suggesting he had prepared the burial site in advance.
The pair were seen on surveillance footage leaving the cinema carrying matching Harkins souvenir cups after buying drinks and snacks. Cellphone data later showed both travelling to a remote desert area, where Jones' phone stopped connecting to the network after about 45 to 50 minutes.
Police said Rodolico's phone remained active before leaving the area roughly 10 minutes later.
Detectives also observed Rodolico cleaning his Nissan Sentra several times after Jones disappeared, including vacuuming the rear passenger area and wiping down the vehicle's interior and trunk.
Evidence found at burial site
Jones' family reported her missing on July 7 after they were unable to contact her.
Using cellphone records, investigators located her body buried in a shallow grave. Detectives recovered several pieces of evidence at the scene, including the Harkins souvenir cups, concrete mix bags, plastic water bottles, latex gloves, a bra, a hair accessory matching one Jones wore on the date and fragments of a condom wrapper.
Authorities have not released Jones' cause of death.
During police interviews, Rodolico allegedly provided multiple conflicting accounts, initially claiming two unidentified men attacked the couple and fatally stabbed Jones before admitting that version of events was fabricated.
Investigators said Rodolico later acknowledged travelling to the desert before picking up Jones but denied killing her. According to the affidavit, detectives believed he showed little remorse and failed to provide consistent answers during questioning.
Rodolico remains in custody on a $2 million bond as the murder case proceeds.