No motive revealed in killing of California farmer's estranged wife in Arizona

Key Highlights

• They declined to say what occurred at the Pinetop house in the last days of Kerri Abatti’s life.“Different theories will come up,” Navajo County Sheriff David Clouse said of the motive.
• “The only thing that’s glaring that I think everybody already knows is there’s a divorce in place and they weren’t able to come to a resolution.
• But I can’t speak exactly to what the motive would be.”Owen Roth, one of Michael Abatti’s attorneys, said his client surrendered to law enforcement, agreed to be extradited to Arizona and remains innocent under the law.
• “Our client is in his mid-60s and has significant health issues, and we continue to worry about his well-being,” Roth said.
• “We ask the public to respect his privacy and constitutional rights and reiterate that this case will be decided based on the evidence by a jury.” An autopsy report released Monday said Kerri Abatti’s cause of death was a gunshot wound to the head. The report said she was found unconscious on the floor near her kitchen by her nephew, who told investigators he heard a loud sound before finding her.