The Centennial man accused of killing his mother and dismembering her body made his second appearance in Arapahoe County District Court, advised of the charges against him including first-degree murder and vehicular eluding.
Ari Misha Liggett, 24, thought to have poisoned his mother after being removed from her will, sat quietly on Oct. 23, his long, dark hair concealing his face.
Deputies arrested the former University of Colorado student on Oct. 17 after finding body parts in the back of his vehicle.
Family members reported Liggett and his 56-year-old mother, Beverly, missing from the home they shared in the 6200 block of East Peakview Avenue on Oct. 15
Sheriff’s deputies spotted the vehicle associated with the missing persons report as it drove through an adjacent neighborhood, but were unable to make contact.
A Greenwood Village police officer saw the vehicle and attempted a traffic stop, but Liggett tried to elude police, crashing his vehicle at the intersection of East Orchard Road and South Dayton Street.
Liggett then fled on foot but was apprehended and taken into custody without further incident.
The Arapahoe County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that in an initial search of the home, investigators found potassium cyanide, a toxic chemical that can cause death.
Court documents also indicate investigators found traces of blood, vomit, and a handsaw and knife in the dishwasher.
But concerns with Liggett’s behavior are not new.
A January 2010 affidavit filed by Beverly Liggett in District Court paints a picture of a troubled young man who mixed chemicals in the backyard; had books on silencers; disliked Jews, although Jewish himself; and was “slightly obsessed with killing, racism and Hitler.”
Beverly Liggett stated in the affidavit that she and her teenage daughter, Livie, were living in fear that Ari would kill them and that he had made statements in the past that he would “get rid of the family.”
A modified rifle with a homemade silencing device was found in the home, and in February of that year, a package of potassium ferrocyanide was delivered to the home, and addressed to the defendant.
Liggett was arrested on March 26, 2010, and charged with possession of a dangerous weapon, appearing before then-Arapahoe County Judge Ethan Feldman.
He pleaded guilty to reckless endangerment and possession of a dangerous weapon. Court documents state he received a four-year deferred sentence and one year of probation.
A mandatory protection order for the two women was issued by Arapahoe County in September 2010, and another for just Livie in July 2011.
Liggett’s father, Ronald Liggett of Westminster, has gone on record with local media stating that his son is “mentally ill.”
Neighbors who knew the victim said the family had aggressively tried to get the defendant help after his 2010 arrest, but “couldn’t find any place that would take him.”
Unemployed, Ari Liggett lists his only source of income for the past 15 months as Social Security on his application for court-appointed counsel.
Liggett’s next court appearance will be Dec. 19, when it will be determined whether there is sufficient evidence to proceed to trial.