Solved case · 2021
Also known as killing of America Thayer · America Thayer's murder
The short answer
America Thayer, 55, was found decapitated in a Shakopee, Minnesota intersection on July 28, 2021; her boyfriend Alexis Saborit was charged with murder and later acquitted by reason of mental illness in 2023.
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Suggest coverage for Killing of America ThayerOn the afternoon of July 28, 2021, a decapitated body was discovered in the middle of an intersection in Shakopee, Minnesota, a Twin Cities suburb; the victim's head was found nearby. The victim was identified as America Mafalda Thayer, a 55-year-old woman from Shakopee. The Shakopee Police Department responded at around 2:30 PM to a report of a headless body dumped from a car near 4th and Spencer. Officers found Thayer's headless body and her head lying near her car, and she was pronounced dead at the scene. A machete and bloody clothing were later found in the recycling bin of a nearby alleyway.
The suspect, 42-year-old Alexis Saborit, was Thayer's boyfriend; the two had reportedly been dating for roughly seven years. According to Saborit, an altercation broke out between the pair while driving through Shakopee after Thayer told him she wanted to break up with him. Saborit pulled out a machete, which he reportedly often carried, and beheaded Thayer. Police documents indicate several witnesses saw the killing; one recorded video of Saborit dumping the body and then picking up Thayer's head by the hair, while another reported seeing him hitting and throwing something.
Saborit was an immigrant from Cuba who, according to authorities, was wanted by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. He reportedly had a prior criminal record including domestic assault charges in Minnesota and Louisiana, a DUI, and fleeing a police officer. Efforts to deport him in 2012 reportedly failed because Cuba would not approve travel documents. He was convicted of domestic violence in 2017 after pinning Thayer to the ground during a jealous confrontation at a bar; a restraining order imposed before that trial was later lifted after Thayer sent the court a handwritten note asking for it to be overturned. On the day of the killing, Saborit was scheduled to appear in Scott County court on arson charges related to allegedly setting fire to his apartment.
Local police found Saborit wandering near Minnesota State Highway 101 and Shenandoah Parkway and arrested him at The Landing historical village, about 1.5 miles from the crime scene and three blocks from the Travelodge hotel where he had been staying. He was charged with second-degree murder, with bail set at $2.5 million, and admitted to police that he had killed Thayer with a machete. He was assigned a public defender at his request, with a first court appearance scheduled for August 9, 2021.
After two psychological evaluations, the Scott County Attorney acknowledged the case was heading toward a likely finding of not guilty by reason of mental illness. On July 17, 2023, Saborit was acquitted of the killing on those grounds.
Authorities attempted to deport Saborit to Cuba, but the effort failed because Cuba would not approve his travel documents.
Saborit was convicted of domestic violence against Thayer after pinning her to the ground during a jealous confrontation at a bar.
America Thayer's decapitated body and head were found in an intersection in Shakopee, Minnesota; Alexis Saborit was arrested about 1.5 miles from the scene and charged with second-degree murder.
Saborit's first scheduled court appearance.
Saborit was acquitted of the killing by reason of mental illness.
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SOLVEDListenSavage, Minnesota · 2000s
Katherine Ann Olson, a 24-year-old St. Olaf College graduate, was fatally shot in October 2007 after responding to a fake nanny job ad on Craigslist. Michael John Anderson, then 19, was convicted of first-degree murder in 2009 and sentenced to life without parole.
SOLVEDListenBloomington, Minnesota · 1990s
Brian Glick, a 21-year-old Subway employee, was beaten to death behind the Bloomington, Minnesota store where he worked during a robbery on October 25, 1993. Dennis Tate and Michael Olson, a former employee, both pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and were sentenced to lengthy prison terms.
Fulton neighborhood alley, Minneapolis, Minnesota · 2010s
Justine Damond, a 40-year-old Australian-American woman, was fatally shot by Minneapolis police officer Mohamed Noor in July 2017 after she called 911 to report a possible assault near her home. Noor was later convicted of third-degree murder and second-degree manslaughter; the murder conviction was later overturned on appeal, and he was resentenced to a shorter term.
Credit: Family of Celeste Rivas HernandezEditorial useSourceONGOINGListenHollywood Hills, Los Angeles, California · 2025
On September 8, 2025, the decomposed remains of 14-year-old Celeste Rivas Hernandez were discovered in the front trunk of an impounded Tesla registered to musician David Burke, known professionally as D4vd; prosecutors allege the two had a sexual relationship beginning when Rivas was 13. Burke was arrested in April 2026 and charged with first-degree murder, continuous sexual abuse of a child under 14, and unlawful mutilation of human remains.
Credit: Family/Instagram photograph, widely distributed in press coverageEditorial useSourceSOLVEDListenMoscow, Idaho · 2022
Four University of Idaho students—Madison Mogen, Kaylee Goncalves, Ethan Chapin, and Xana Kernodle—were fatally stabbed inside an off-campus house in Moscow, Idaho, in the early morning hours of November 13, 2022. Bryan Kohberger, a criminology PhD student at nearby Washington State University, was arrested that December and pleaded guilty in 2025, receiving four consecutive life sentences.
Image recordEditorial useSourceSOLVEDListenAustin, Texas · 2022
Moriah Wilson, a 25-year-old professional cyclist, was shot and killed at a friend's residence in Austin, Texas, on May 11, 2022, and Kaitlin Armstrong was later convicted and sentenced to 90 years in prison for the killing.
