Matthew Dempsey: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know

Matthew Dempsey is an 18-year-old Texas man who is accused of murdering his own mother after she walked in on him and a friend burglarizing her home, authorities say. Mary Helen Dempsey was killed April 8 at her San Antonio home. Her son and his friend, 18-year-old Daniel Saucedo, have been charged with murder, the San Antonio Police said April 10.

Matthew Dempsey and Saucedo were arrested on April 9. They are both being held at the Bexar County Jail. According to police, Dempsey and Saucedo had broken into Mary Dempsey’s West Side home in San Antonio to steal from her. When she came home, they attacked her, according to police. The 53-year-old woman was beaten and then had her throat slashed, police said. She was found dead Tuesday morning.

“Tonight, Matthew Dempsey, 18, was arrested for Capital Murder. The murder occurred on the 7500 blk. of Stagecoach today. Dempsey is accused in the murder of Mary Dempsey, 53,” the San Antonio Police said in a statement. In an updated tweet on April 9, police said, “18yr old Matthew Dempsey and 18 yr old Daniel Saucedo have both been arrested for Capital Murder. Dempsey and Saucedo are accused in the murder of Mary Dempsey, 53 yrs old. Detectives have also located the victim’s vehicle that was taken from the scene.”

Here’s what you need to know about Matthew Dempsey and the murder of Mary Helen Espinoza Dempsey:

1. Matthew Dempsey Admitted to Beating His Mother With a Baseball Bat & Then Slashing Her Throat Before Fleeing From the House With Stolen Items in Her Car

Matthew Dempsey admitted to police that he killed his own 53-year-old mother, Mary Dempsey, at her home, with the help of his friend, Daniel Saucedo, according to an arrest affidavit obtained by the San Antonio Express-News.

Dempsey told police he and Saucedo went to his mother’s home either late Monday night or early Tuesday morning. Dempsey did not live with his mother, but they used a key to enter the house, according to police.

San Antonio PoliceDaniel Saucedo.

Dempsey, who was armed with a loaded gun, said he and Saucedo began “gathering items they were going to take from the home.” Dempsey told police that his mother then came home and turned on the lights. He said he immediately attacked her from behind with a baseball bat, according to the affidavit. Saucedo then joined in the attack and beat her with the bat, Dempsey told police. Dempsey said the pair then got a knife from the kitchen and slit his mother’s throat, the newspaper reports. Saucedo bound Mary Dempsey with duct tape and covered her with a blanket from her bedroom, Dempsey told police.

Dempsey said that he and Saucedo then went through his mother’s wallet and loaded the stolen items into her car, according to the affidavit. They would later withdraw money from an ATM using her card, police said. According to police, Demspey and Saucedo fled from the house in Mary Dempsey’s 2016 Honda Accord. The car was later found by investigators.

2. Mary Dempsey Was Found Dead by Her Daughter After She Didn’t Show Up for Work at a Credit Union

Mary Helen Espinoza Dempsey.

Mary Helen Espinoza Dempsey was found dead by her daughter after she didn’t show up for work on Tuesday, KSAT-TV reports. Jessica Dempsey was contacted by her mother’s concerned co-worker and went to her house. She found both doors of the home unlocked and her mother’s car missing.

Jessica Dempsey told police that she went into the house and saw something covered by a blanket on the floor. She then realized it was a person under the blanket next to a pool of blood. She called police, who responded and pronounced Mary Dempsey dead.

According to her Linkedin profile, Mary Dempsey worked as a mortgage loan processor at Synergy Federal Credit Union in San Antonio. She previously worked for several years as a mortgage processor at USAA Real Estate Company and also worked at Sarma and the Randolph Brooks Federal Credit Union.

Dempsey was divorced from Matthew Dempsey’s father, Jack Dempsey, in 2016, according to Bexar County court records.

On Facebook, Mary Dempsey called her son her “baby.”

Friends paid tribute to Dempsey on Facebook. “Mary Helen Espinoza Dempsey I’m shocked and saddened by the loss of a friend. You are now in a lovely and peaceful place and I will see you again!” one wrote.

Another said, “Yesterday, many of us lost a great friend. She was there whenever we called, texted, or needed help. She loved what she did and her kids were her world. We may not understand why things happen the way they do, but I know there is a bigger plan and heaven just gained another angel. You will be missed by all who knew you. May justice prevail and your family find peace and comfort without you here. Gonna miss your smile, laughs, jokes, and stories.”

A third friend wrote, “Dear Mary Helen Espinoza Dempsey you are truly going to be missed. I hate what has happened. My heart is so broken. This hurts too much, to know I won’t ever be able to see your beautiful smiling face again.”

A friend who works as a gun instructor and who gave her shooting lessons wrote on Facebook, “sad I met your son and had a few hour convo with him about guns and possibly training with me… I can honestly say I’m glad that never happened… he was your pride and joy And seemed like such a level headed kid. My heart truly hearts Mary Helen Espinoza Dempsey knowing that I will have to wait to give you an awesome hug, a hard time and of course have a great conversation like we always did…!!!”

Dempsey’s Facebook profile quote reads, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love,joy,peace, patience,kindness,goodness,faithfulness Galatians 5:22.”

3. Matthew Dempsey, Who Was Arrested on a DUI Charge in October 2018, Went to High School With Saucedo

Matthew Dempsey with his mother Mary Dempsey.

Matthew Dempsey went to high school with Daniel Saucedo, according to Facebook. The two were close friends in high school. On Facebook, Dempsey said he attended John Jay High School, but it was not immediately clear if that is the school he graduated from last year.

In October 2018, Matthew Dempsey was arrested on a charge of driving under the influence and was released on $1,000 bail. He is still awaiting trial on that charge, Bexar County court records obtained by Heavy show.

Matthew Dempsey was in an ROTC program in high school, according to social media posts. His Facebook page does not include many details about his life. He shared several photos related to the military, including multiple photos about Chris Kyle, the late Navy SEAL.

4. He Lives in a Mobile Home With His Pregnant Girlfriend

Matthew Dempsey with his girlfriend.

Matthew Dempsey does not live at his mother’s home. According to the arrest affidavit obtained by the San Antonio Express-News, Dempsey lives in a mobile home with his girlfriend. Police said that they went to the mobile home after Matthew’s mother was found dead and his girlfriend told investigators that he had confessed to her that he had killed his mother along with Daniel Saucedo.

Police said they found a trash bag with bloody clothes inside at the mobile home in the 7600 block of West Military Drive.

According to her Facebook page, Dempsey’s girlfriend is pregnant, with their baby due in July. Police said in the affidavit that both Matthew and his girlfriend were taken into custody at their mobile home, but it was not immediately clear if she could face charges in connection to the case.

5. Dempsey, Who Faces the Death Penalty, Is Being Held at the Bexar County Jail on $1 Million Bail

Matthew Demspey and Daniel Saucedo are both being held on $1 million bail at the Bexar County Jail. It is not clear if they have hired attorneys who could speak on their behalf.

Court records show that Demspey is awaiting indictment on the capital murder charge and he appeared in court on April 10. Saucedo also made his first court appearance before a magistrate on April 10. If convicted of capital murder, Dempsey and Saucedo could be sentenced to death.

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