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A man in Arizona has revealed why he stabbed a hiker 15 times while she was on a hiking trail.
Zion Teasley, 25, a troubled one-time Marine recruit who was transitioning to live as a trans woman, has admitted to stabbing hiker Lauren Heike, 29, to death in Arizona.
Speaking to police about his motive, Teasley said: “she was what I would want to look like”.
In a deal that took the d£ath penalty off the table, Zion Teasley pleaded guilty to first-degree murd£r in court on Friday, October 2, in connection with the d£ath of Lauren Heike, a beauty technician.
Before the murd£r, Teasley wrote in his diary that he was “battling with my gender identity and sexuality,” which he believed was conflicting with his Christian faith, according to a 400-page police report.
“I want to live a life of serving god, but how can I with these and other sins in the way,” wrote Teasley, whose lawyer called “she” in court.
“[I know] I am forgiven for my sins, but it’s still a lot of pressure and it’s hard to maintain a good Christian mindset 24/7.”
He said he was depressed by seeing “beautiful” women because he was stuck being “a man”.
Heike’s murder gained international attention after she was found stabbed more than a dozen times not far from her apartment, on April 28, 2023.
Days later, police arrested Teasley, who was on probation at the time after serving a year in prison for armed robbery and other offences.
When he was first interviewed by police, he denied having seen Ms Heike anywhere except on the news.
He then told officers, “That’s what I would want to look like”.
Teasley was caught on surveillance footage as he stalked Ms Heike, a stranger, before he chased her down, k!lled her with a pocket knife and jumped over the fence to escape.
Investigators said they linked Teasley to her d£ath through DNA on Heike’s shoe, along with other forensic evidence, including cellphone location data.
Police believed Heike fought off her attacker and escaped but that her injuries were too severe.
Teasley’s boss told police he had recently been fired from his job for being “aggressive” toward female employees — and had stolen clothing that matched what was worn by the k!ller.
Teasley was indicted on 10 counts after investigators said he had sexually explicit images involving a child under 15 years old and possibly shared them.
Authorities said they believe at this time that the attack was random, but added that they “have not concluded our investigation into that.”
He pleaded guilty to one count of sexual exploitation of a minor in that case.
Sentencing in that case is scheduled for Dec. 4.
