Investigators in eastern Arizona said they have not disclosed a suspected motive in the shooting death of Kerri Ann Abatti, the estranged wife of a prominent California farmer, while describing the couple’s ongoing divorce as a central thread in their inquiries. Navajo County officials discussed the case at a news conference Monday and released details from an autopsy conducted in connection with the death.
Sheriff David Clouse said “different theories will come up” regarding the motive, and he pointed to the existence of a divorce “in place” without saying what he believed led to the killing. He said the case’s divorce proceedings “arose in nearly all interviews with family and friends,” according to investigators.
Michael Abatti, 63, was arrested last week in El Centro, California, in the killing of Kerri Abatti, 59, at her family’s vacation home in Pinetop, Arizona, after she moved there following the split. Investigators said he traveled from El Centro to Pinetop on Nov. 20, carried out the killing, and returned to California early the next morning.
Authorities said they declined to describe what occurred at the Pinetop house in the last days of Kerri Abatti’s life. They also did not provide an explanation of how the shooting was carried out beyond details they cited from the autopsy report.
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. Roth said “we continue to worry about his well-being” because his client is in his mid-60s and has significant health issues, adding that the case “will be decided based on the evidence by a jury.”
The medical examiner’s office in Coconino County, which conducted the autopsy, released its findings Monday, including that 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.
The autopsy report said investigators, when searching the home, found “a circular defect” on a window and determined “a gunshot likely originated from the yard outside the home.” The Associated Press reported that it left messages seeking further explanation with the Navajo County Sheriff’s Office and that the medical examiner’s office directed questions about the report to a Navajo County official.
The investigation also unfolded alongside the divorce proceedings that were pending in California at the time of Kerri Abatti’s death. Investigators said authorities searched Michael Abatti’s home in far Southern California on Dec. 2 as part of the inquiry into his wife’s death.
Court filings and background described by investigators portrayed the divorce as financially driven, with the couple sparring over support and their standard of living. The Associated Press reported that Kerri Abatti told the court that during more than three decades of marriage the couple maintained an affluent lifestyle, including property in three states, international vacations and private schooling for their children. The filings also described that she initially received $5,000 monthly temporary spousal support, later sought an increase, and asked for an additional $100,000 in attorney’s fees.
Investigators said Michael Abatti agreed to raise support to $6,400 per month despite arguing in court filings that poor farming years had reduced his income, blaming market shifts favoring Ukrainian crops, rising shipping costs and harsh weather. The AP reported that Michael Abatti comes from a long line of farmers in the Imperial Valley, the biggest user of Colorado River water, and said his grandfather was an early Italian immigrant settler while his father helped start the Imperial Valley Vegetable Growers Association.
The Associated Press also reported that Michael Abatti served on the board of the Imperial Irrigation District from 2006 to 2010. He and Kerri Abatti married in 1992 and had three children, the AP said.