Woman killed at her home; cops arrest man they say was her lover

A Maricopa woman was found dead at her home in The Villages at Rancho El Dorado Sunday, and police arrested a man for murder later in the day.

Maricopa Police said officers responded to a 911 call at the 40000 block of West Cydnee Drive at 5:52 a.m. reporting a female was attempting to commit suicide and was dying. The caller, a neighbor, reported Miguel Daniel Tapia had come to his house telling him to “call 911 his mother was dying.”

An MPD press release said officers arrived on scene and found the victim, 43-year-old Holly Berry, deceased in the backyard. Officers observed blood located in the kitchen area leading to the backyard. 

They also observed the tile floor was wet and appeared to have been recently washed with water. Berry appeared to have visible injuries to her face, abdomen and arms. 

At the scene, Tapia made statements the victim “got stupid” and they had pushed each other back and forth until the victim fell and stopped talking. 

Tapia later told detectives he blacks out and gets violent when he’s drunk. 

It was determined that Tapia, 21, and the victim were in a sexual relationship, according to MPD's report.

Tapia also told officers he blew breaths into her mouth for one to two hours before attempting to get help. 

At approximately 8 p.m., Tapia was booked into the Pinal County Detention Center on felony charges of 2nd degree murder, aggravated assault and tampering with physical evidence.       

Due to the size of the scene and evidence that was located on the sidewalk leading to the neighbor’s house, the Department of Public Safety Criminal Investigation Unit team responded to assist with processing the extensive scene.