A Chandler man is facing second-degree murder and elder abuse charges after police say he let his 84-year-old mother die in maggot-infested squalor while systematically draining her monthly Social Security checks. Allen Louis Page, 64, was arrested Thursday following an 11-month investigation into the September 2025 death of his mother, Mary Elenz, who was under his care at the time.
Hospice care staff who were called to the family's Chandler home in September 2025 found Elenz unresponsive and living amid severe squalor, with maggot-infested wounds, according to KTAR News. She died in hospice care the following day. Chandler Police then opened an investigation that would stretch nearly a year before Page was formally arrested, as first reported by FOX 10 Phoenix.
According to court documents cited by the station, Page held medical power of attorney for his mother and used that authority to spend her $1,567 monthly Social Security payments down to zero as soon as they landed in the account. Investigators say the money went toward mobile game microtransactions, fast food, a Spotify subscription, and nude photos purchased from online personas, even as her physical condition deteriorated. Police records reviewed by the outlet reportedly indicate Page had not held steady employment for years.
Search Warrant Turns Up Hidden Firearms
When detectives executed a search warrant at the Chandler home, they said they found four illegal firearms hidden in Page's closet. Because Page has a prior felony record that made him a prohibited possessor, the discovery led to four additional felony counts of misconduct involving weapons, the station's report notes. It remains unclear from available records what underlying felony rendered Page ineligible to possess firearms.
Page faced a Maricopa County Superior Court commissioner during his initial appearance, where Commissioner Gwyndolynn Gentry ordered him held on a $1 million cash bond, per the same account. A preliminary hearing has been set for September 8. If Page posts bail, he would be placed under house arrest with GPS tracking, according to the report.
What the Charges Carry Under Arizona Law
Arizona classifies second-degree murder as a Class 1 felony under Arizona Revised Statutes § 13-1104, applying to cases where a person intentionally, knowingly, or recklessly causes death under circumstances showing extreme indifference to human life, without requiring proof of premeditation. Standard sentences for the charge range from 10 to 25 years in prison. Separately, Arizona's vulnerable adult statute, A.R.S. § 13-3623, makes it a Class 2 felony to intentionally or knowingly cause physical injury or place a vulnerable adult in a situation endangering their health, carrying penalties of up to 10 to 12.5 years. Under the law, a vulnerable adult is anyone over 18 unable to protect themselves due to impairment. Legal experts note that murder and elder abuse charges carry distinct evidentiary standards, with prosecutors needing to show different levels of intent or negligence for each.
A Pattern Advocates Say Often Goes Unreported
The case adds to a troubling statewide pattern. Arizona Adult Protective Services received more than 69,000 communications and opened 42,440 formal investigations into vulnerable adult maltreatment in fiscal year 2024, with financial misconduct accounting for more than a quarter of all abuse reports, according to AZ Law Now. Within Maricopa County alone, the agency investigates roughly 10,000 cases each year, according to City of Mesa public safety guidelines, even as national estimates suggest only 1 in 14 elder abuse incidents are ever reported to law enforcement or protective agencies. Advocates say fear of retaliation or institutionalization often keeps victims from seeking help.
It remains unknown whether any prior Adult Protective Services reports had been filed regarding the Chandler household before Elenz's death. State lawmakers have moved to tighten caregiver oversight in recent years; Governor Katie Hobbs signed House Bill 2764 into law in April 2024, imposing stricter regulatory standards, memory care oversight, and administrative penalties for care facilities and caregivers following thousands of annual elder abuse complaints, as reported by Cronkite News. Hoodline has previously covered a push to revive an Arizona elder bill tied to gaps in the state's vulnerable adult protections.
