UNSOLVED HOMICIDE: SARAH SAGANITSO

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When an Arizona woman fails to return home from her late-night shift at the hospital where she works, her family and friends launch a search and locate her battered body. Her accused killer raises one of the most outrageous defenses ever entertained in criminal court in this episode of Last Seen Alive.

Sarah Saganitso was 40-years-old when she was murdered in Flagstaff, Arizona. Her case remains officially unsolved. Image source: family photo.
Sarah was an irreplaceable pillar in her large family. She was a beloved mom, mother-figure, sister and aunt. Image source: family photo.
Pictured: a clump of grass found in the parking lot of Sarah’s workplace. George Abney’s legal defense alleged that it was “grave grass” placed there by an evil witch to intimidate Sarah’s family. Image source: police photo.
When a local man was charged with Sarah’s murder, his legal defense had the audacity to argue that Sarah had been killed by a malicious, shape-shifting witch rather than the man who had confessed to her murder.
Then 35-year-old George Abney was charged with Sarah’s murder several months after her death. He was at her place of work on the night of her murder, and confessed to committing it. Image source: police photo.
Following a bizarre trial in which his defense blamed a Navajo skinwalker for Sarah’s death, Sarah’s accused killer–George Abney–was acquitted.
Sarah’s accused killer’s legal defense presented an outrageous argument in court, blaming murder victim Sarah Saganitso’s own Navajo culture for her death. This newspaper headline from the time captures the absurdity of the trial. The Navajo cultural “expert” produced by the defense was not a Navajo person.

Sources used to research this episode:

Out There: Crimes of the Paranormal, Episode 6 (Hulu)

Hospital Employee Murdered (Mary Tolan / Arizona Daily Sun via newspapers.com)

Obituary: Sarah L. Saganitso (Arizona Daily Sun via newspapers.com)

Body of Stabbed, Beaten Flagstaff Hospital Worker Found (Mark Shaffer / The Arizona Republic via newspapers.com)

Suffocation Caused Death (Arizona Daily Sun via newspapers.com)

Versions Conflict in Suspect’s Murder Story (Steve Ryan / Arizona Daily Sun via newspapers.com)

Police Arrest Suspect in June Murder (Ted Bartimus / Arizona Daily Sun via newspapers.com)

Videos Show Murder Suspect Interrogation (Steve Ryan / Arizona Daily Sun via newspapers.com)

Attorneys Argue Whether Wound from Bite, Knife (Arizona Daily Sun via newspapers.com)

Judge Gives Probe Data to Abney Counsel (Ted Bartimus / Arizona Daily Sun via newspapers.com)

Pastor Tells of Member’s Killing Dream (Arizona Daily Star via newspapers.com)

Mystery Suspect Surfaces (Ted Bartimus / Arizona Sun via newspapers.com)

Defendant is Acquitted of Murder (AP / The Arizona Republic via newspapers.com)

Videos Show Murder Suspect Interrogation (Steve Ryan / Arizona Daily Sun via newspapers.com)

Death Clues, Navajo Witchcraft Linked by Prof at Murder Trial (Mark Shaffer / The Arizona Republic via newspapers.com)

Experts Say Bitemark as Good as a Fingerprint (Steve Ryan / Arizona Daily Sun via newspapers.com)

Skinwalker (Mythology) (EBSCO)

If you know anything about the death of Sarah Saganitso, please contact the Flagstaff Police Department at 928-774-1414.

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