Inset: Nicholas L. Ivey (Indian River County Sheriff's Office). Background: The area in Florida where Ivey allegedly admitted to killing his grandmother (Google Maps).
A 29-year-old man in Florida was arrested in connection with his grandmother's death after he allegedly admitted to killing the 76-year-old woman by "snapping her neck" and "stomping on her head" because she "poked" him with a kitchen knife.
Nicholas Leonard Ivey was taken into custody this week and charged with one count each of grand theft auto, unlawful use of a credit card, fraudulent use of a credit card, and criminal use of an ID, court records show.
The car, credit card, and ID all belonged to Ivey's grandmother, Patricia Dibella, who was killed in her home last weekend. Though he has not been charged in her death as of Friday afternoon, Ivey allegedly confessed to killing Dibella multiple times.
According to a probable cause affidavit, deputies with the Indian River County Sheriff's Office at about 8:15 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 2, responded to a request for a welfare check at Dibella's apartment in the 5000 block of Fairways Circle, which is about 150 miles north of Miami. Ivey's father — also Dibella's son-in-law — placed the 911 call, telling the dispatcher his son had just called and told him Dibella was dead.
Upon arriving, first responders found Ivey in front of the building. He reportedly told the deputies that Dibella was dead inside the apartment.
A deputy went inside and found Dibella lying prone on the bed in the main bedroom. When he attempted to lift her arm, it was "extremely stiff," allowing him to immediately determine that she was dead. Ivey was then placed under arrest and transported to Indian River County Sheriff's Office.
While en route, Ivey allegedly referenced his grandmother, saying, "She came at me with a knife." When informed he was being transported to the sheriff's Criminal Investigations Division, he "spontaneously" told a detective that "he killed his grandmother," the affidavit states.
In a post-Miranda interview, Ivey allegedly told detectives that Dibella "poked him in the back with a kitchen steak knife" before again confessing to killing her. He said the attack took place at about 9 p.m. on Feb. 1.
"[Ivey] killed Patricia [Dibella] by 'snapping her neck' and punching and stomping on her head while she was on the ground," the affidavit states.
After the alleged murder, Ivey said he moved the body from the kitchen and laid his grandmother on her bed before using towels to clean her blood from the floor.
Ivey said the sweatshirt he was wearing during the interview was the same one he was wearing when he killed his grandmother. However, he said he had "washed the sweatshirt because it was covered in blood." He also said he washed the towels he used to clean the blood from the kitchen.
When Ivey finished cleaning, he allegedly drove Dibella's car to a nearby store where he used her credit card to purchase beer and cigarettes, the affidavit says. Ivey clarified that he was never given permission to use Dibella's car or credit cards.
"Due to [Ivey] informing [detectives] that he killed Dibella by 'snapping her neck,' stomping her head into the kitchen floor with his foot and punching her repeatedly in the head, the investigation into the death of Dibella is ongoing," the affidavit concludes.
Ivey is currently being held in Indian River County Jail on $400,000 bond and is scheduled to return to court for his arraignment on March 10, jail records show.
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