Arizona man sentenced to 13 years in prison for murder of his aunt

PHOENIX (AZFamily) – An Arizona man convicted of stabbing a family member to death when he was 14 has learned how long he will spend behind bars.

Ares Adle, who was convicted of second-degree murder, was sentenced to 13 years in prison for the 2019 murder of his aunt, 42-year-old Tonya Harper.

On the night of February 1, 2019, Adle, then 14, stabbed and killed his aunt at her home near Alma School and Chandler Heights, south of Chandler. Prosecutors say he planned the crime and point to evidence that Adle cut more than a dozen phone lines and hid some of his aunt’s cellphones and the bloody knife.

Defense attorneys objected to the allegations, claiming prosecutors lacked a motive for the crime.

Adle said on the witness stand that he “felt threatened” by a comment from his aunt.

“NO. I love Aunt Tonya. I didn’t want to hurt her. I just didn’t want to get hurt myself,” Adle said of the murder.

Adle’s parents previously told Arizona’s Family that he suffers from a form of schizophrenia, but the judge ruled that mental health and illness would not be allowed in the trial.

Adle was charged with first-degree murder, but in October a jury chose the alternative of second-degree murder, with a sentence of 10 to 25 years.

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