The suspect in a Labor Day murder in Scottsdale made his first court appearance Sunday evening.
“I believe that you are being given wrong information about me entirely, and my name. And that these proceedings are illegal and there’s no truth to what that woman or that system are giving you,” Matthew Dieringer told the judge.
He had maintained a calm demeanor as a state prosecutor told the judge why they’re pursuing a premeditated first-degree murder charge against him.
“The subject allegedly beat the victim to death. This was a very violent and horrific murder,” said the prosecutor. “There was a strong weight of evidence against Mr. Dieringer, including presumptive DNA match to blood that was found at the scene.”
Dieringer, a convicted dog killer, is now accused of murdering 67-year-old Frank Quaranta in a Scottsdale townhome on Labor Day.
Police said Quaranta had talked with friends the night before, and when he didn’t show up for work the next day, they asked for a welfare check. That’s when officers found Quaranta dead in his home with signs of blunt force trauma and a struggle.
Police said Quaranta had befriended Dieringer, who is described as “manipulative and charismatic,” at a church cooling center where Quaranta worked. He had let Dieringer live with him for a few months.
Arizona’s Family is told Quaranta’s friends had grown concerned about Dieringer’s behavior.
Days after Quaranta’s body was discovered, police reached out to the public for help.
When asked why detectives waited so long to alert the public about a clearly dangerous and violent suspect, Sgt. Allison Sempsis with the Scottsdale Police Dept. said, “Our detectives wanted to use all of the resources available first to not scare the suspect away and let him know that we know who he is and that we were after him and trying to locate him.”
Arizona’s Family followed up by asking what was done to secure the public’s safety in the meantime.
“We knew this was a targeted attack. This was not a random, going after a stranger on the sidewalk,” said Sgt. Sempsis.
Dieringer was arrested Saturday morning on a probation violation after police said a man walking his dog in Phoenix recognized the suspect from the news. He is being held on a $3 million cash bond, and if posted, the state is asking for electronic monitoring and house arrest.
“Our understanding is that he is transient, and we believe that he is an extremely dangerous individual and that this significantly large cash-only bond is necessary to protect the safety of the community,” said the prosecutor.
Dieringer also had an interaction with the judge, saying, “This proceeding was illegal, your honor.”
The judge said he appointed Dieringer with an attorney, and they can file whatever he thinks is necessary.
