A 37-year-old California woman has been charged with the murder of her mother, who was found dead in her home on Saturday, wrapped in plastic bags and locked in a closet.
Court documents say that Kelli Yingling, who lived with her mother in Hanford, was already on probation for elder abuse and threats made last year against Peggi Yingling, the 67-year-old woman who was found dead on May 18, KMPH reported.
Police in Hanford were called to the home on that date by a neighbor who reported Peggi Yingling hadn’t been seen for several weeks. Officers entered the home and found the woman’s body. Police said she “had been deceased for an extended amount of time.”
An autopsy determined her death was not natural and that her body showed signs of strangulation, according to KMPH. Investigators interviewed the daughter, Kelli Yingling, who reportedly made statements that implicated her in her mother’s death.
Kelli Yingling was already in jail at the time on unrelated charges from earlier in the month. She appeared in court on Wednesday and pleaded not guilty to her mother’s death, KFSN said.
Prosecutors have charged Yingling with elder abuse and murder.
“We wouldn’t file a case unless we believed that we could prove it beyond a reasonable doubt. And in this case we do have that conviction. And with respect to the locals, we are committed to protecting our elderly population,” said Kings County District Attorney Sarah Hacker.
Yingling is due in court again on July 9.
