Family Forced to Bust Down Door When Arriving for Dinner, Make Sickening Discovery

A New Mexico man has been charged with murder after relatives found his wife dead in their Albuquerque, New Mexico, home on Thanksgiving Day.

The criminal complaint stated that the Albuquerque Police Department received a call from Tami Pacheco in the afternoon after her brother, Darin Denio, told her that no one was answering the door to their other brother’s home, according to KOAT-TV.

Darin Denio had driven from out of town for Thanksgiving dinner and had just arrived at the home of his brother, Karlan Denio, and his wife, Connie Denio

Pacheco asked for a wellfare check to be done by police, but police told family members they could not force their way into the home, leading to relatives taking the hinges off a door, according to the New York Post.

Police soon received a second call, according to the Albuquerque Journal.

According to the criminal complaint, Pacheco entered the home, where she discovered Karlan Denio “lying on the bed” and Connie Denio’s body on the floor.

“Karlan looked at her, at which point (she) backed out of the residence and called police again,” the complaint said.

Connie Denio’s body was “dismembered and disemboweled” in the bedroom, police said.

Police were informed by the family that Karlan Denio suffered from frontotemporal dementia, which he had been diagnosed with two years ago. This diagnosis can lead to massive personality changes and other mental health issues.

Neighbor Rich Cordova called the couple “nice folks” of whom he “would least expect” to have such an incident befall them.

“I’m stunned,” he said, adding that he often saw them walking in the neighborhood. “That is unbelievable.”

Karlan Denio has been charged with murder.

He is currently in the hospital recovering from lacerations to his arm and neck.

KOAT reported that blood was found in the house near the door to the garage.

There were no indications anything had been taken from the house or disturbed.

According to the Journal, family members told police that Connie Denio had arranged for them to show up at 1 p.m. Thursday for a family dinner.

Her last contact with the family, according to police, was at about 5:30 p.m. Wednesday in a group chat “discussing plans for Thanksgiving.”