Background: News footage of Jeffrey Zizz at his April 21 court appearance (KOMO). Inset: Marcia Norman (Thurston County Sheriff’s Office).
A Washington handyman accused of murdering an 82-year-old woman allegedly tortured her for “hours” before burying her body in concrete and fleeing the state.
Jeffrey Zizz, 47, was charged with first-degree murder, first-degree kidnapping, and unlawful disposal of human remains after he was named as a person of interest in the case of the death of Marcia Norman, 82, whose body was found encased in concrete underneath a shed on another property. Zizz, who had been in custody on separate charges, was reportedly the last person to see Norman alive after the two had dinner plans on April 1.
When Norman went missing, Zizz was questioned by police twice before evidence apparently caught him in a lie.
In a press conference on Monday, Thurston County Sheriff Derek Sanders detailed some of the evidence that led to the arrest of Zizz for the alleged murder and kidnapping of Norman. As previously reported by Law&Crime, Zizz and Norman, who were on friendly terms, had made dinner plans for April 1. According to court documents obtained by local ABC affiliate KOMO, Zizz reportedly told police when he was questioned that he and Norman had dinner that evening and he went home around 9 p.m.
Sanders said that automatic license plate readers, known as Flock cameras, caught Zizz’s vehicle driving toward Norman’s property at 3:04 a.m. on April 2 and again at 7:03 a.m. Court documents said that Zizz’s explanation for the two trips was that he needed to retrieve tools and then a trailer.
During the press conference, Sanders stated that Zizz took a polygraph test, which he “failed, extremely poorly.” He requested an attorney during his second interview.
KOMO also reported on the evidence described in the documents, including “a five-page typed letter. The letter appeared to be a meticulously planned out burglary/sexual assault of an adult woman, identified as a ‘customer.”” When asked by a reporter about any correlation between the letter and what happened to Norman, Sanders said there were “similarities,” but his office was still withholding information due to the ongoing investigation. He called the letter “extremely disturbing.”
The court documents also detailed a chilling encounter between Zizz and Norman that reportedly occurred earlier this year that Norman had relayed to her family members. Norman reportedly told them that she woke up in the middle of the night to find Zizz at the foot of her bed. An arrest report obtained by KOMO stated that Norman “told Zizz that it was inappropriate for him to be there and he needed to leave.”
Norman also reportedly told her son that “she spoke with Zizz and made it clear to him that they were to keep a professional relationship and he was [told] not to cross those boundaries again.” The alleged incident was not reported to police.
According to the arrest report, when asked about the incident, Zizz reportedly “admitted that this had happened, he stated that he went into (Norman’s) room and while she was sleeping, he rubbed her shoulder, wanting to speak with her.” The report also stated that “Zizz told detectives that he did have thoughts about (Norman) romantically.”
During the press conference, Thurston County Coroner Gary Warnock stated that Norman’s cause of death was “combined blunt force and penetrating force injuries of the head,” which were accompanied by “multiple blunt force injuries to her torso and extremities.” He added that the “injuries were inflicted while Miss Norman was alive,” and later explained, “Her onset from injury to death was not instant. It was hours.” He did say he believed Norman was dead when she was buried.
Warnock said, “In our line of work, we see and witness many things. And this investigation is one you cannot unsee. I have been with the coroner’s office for nearly 25 years, with 19 years as the coroner, and this is the worst case I’ve witnessed.”
When asked about a possible murder weapon, Warnock said as it related to the penetrating force injuries, he suspected a “pneumatic nailer,” commonly known as a nail gun. He also believed that those particular injuries occurred during the hours that Norman was still alive.
Prosecuting Attorney Jon Tunheim said Norman’s injuries were “consistent with torture” but was not prepared to say conclusively that Norman had been tortured before her death.
When it came to Norman’s remains finally being found, Sanders said her body was found on a “totally separate property” that Zizz was “also conducting business on.” Court documents noted that “wrapped around (Norman’s) wrists and ankles were long black Velcro straps, as well as evidence that she had been bound prior to death.”
Tunheim stated that an arraignment for Zizz was scheduled for May 6. During his appearance on April 21, a judge ordered that he be held without bond.
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