Weber could seek death penalty in Roy killing

OGDEN — The Weber County Attorney's Office officially notified the state's 2nd District Court this week that it intends to seek the death penalty for Jeremy Lee Valdes if he is convicted of killing a Roy woman and her adult son.

Prosecutors say Valdes killed Pamela Jeffries, 56, and her son, Matthew Roddy, 31, on Nov. 25, 2009, in the Roy mobile home they shared, as part of a dispute over prescription drugs that reportedly had been stolen.

Valdes' girlfriend, Miranda Mandy Statler, testified March 10 that she saw Valdes emerge from a bedroom carrying a knife and saw Valdes kick Jeffries, who was on her hands and knees in another room, in the face, knocking the woman backward. He then wrapped a plastic garbage bag over Jeffries' head and secured it with duct tape, Statler said.

Medical evidence showed Roddy had been stabbed 31 times and bled to death. Jeffries died from head injuries, although asphyxiation from suffocation might have contributed to her death.

Valdes, 33, is charged with two counts of capital murder and other charges.

Statler was given immunity for her testimony and, as part of a plea deal, pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice, a second-degree felony. Four other felony charges were dismissed. She will be sentenced April 26.

— Linda Thomson