Kingman, Arizona, homeowners find out body may be buried in backyard

Two new Kingman, Arizona, homeowners learned a homicide victim is likely buried in the backyard of the property they purchased in April, and will remain there until at least September.

The husband, when asked, confirmed they have a mix of emotions that includes worry about their investment and stress associated with living on a burial ground. The couple declined to comment further.

The investigation began when Richard Polaski, 63, of Kingman tried to take his life at a Laughlin motel July 9. The Mohave County sheriff’s office said Polaski confessed to killing his friend John Holland, 65, while Polanski was being treated at a hospital in Bullhead City, Arizona, for intentionally overdosing on Tylenol PM.

“Richard stated that during an argument with John at his residence he had stabbed him in the stomach several times until he died,” court documents said. “Richard then disposed of John’s body in a hole in his backyard located on Lass Avenue, then covered it with several feet of cement.”

Chief Deputy Sheriff Rodney Head said authorities have been slow to attempt to exhume Holland’s remains out of respect for the property owners who were out of town when the case unfolded. Head said it’ll be early September, if not sooner, before the excavation begins because authorities want to get the job done with minimal intrusion, and ensure that repairs are completed in a timely fashion.

Polanski’s attorney declined to comment or say when his next court date is.

Meantime, detectives continue their investigation involving an alleged conspiracy to steal Holland’s assets after the apparent July 2015 homicide.

“Richard said that John had a significant amount of (money), upward of a few million dollars, in a Merrill Lynch account which he gained access to by forging documents and obtaining power of attorney over John after his murder,” court documents said. They said that Polaski implicated a woman in positioning himself to take control of the victim’s assets. No one has been charged in that case.

“Richard said that (the woman) assisted him in forging documents to obtain access to John’s money and transferring the deed of residence into his name,” the affidavit said.

Mohave County assessor’s office records show that Polaski and Holland were co-listed on the deed to the Lass Avenue home, but that the deed was transferred to Polaski in February, seven months after the homicide, and just two months before he sold the home for $159,000, with a down payment of only $1,000.

The indictment alleges that the murder occurred at another Holland-owned property on Northern Avenue. Assessor records show the deed to that property was transferred to Polaski in March.

Court documents indicated that blood swabs were collected from the “office-bedroom” of the Northern Avenue property.

Polaski told investigators that he provided a large sum of money to the woman and that she had about $78,000 in a safety deposit box at a Wells Fargo branch in Bullhead City, according to court documents. They said Polaski met her brother where he worked as a bartender in a casino July 8, leaving the brother a duffel bag full of documents used in the fraud scheme and about $38,000 in cash.

The affidavit said surveillance video from the casino confirmed their meeting and exchange of the duffel bag and envelopes containing the money.

Prosecutor Jonathan Taylor said no one else has yet been charged in the case that remains under investigation.

“There are a lot of areas that we still need to look into, including other people involved in the forgery and investigation,” Head said.

Polaski is being held in jail in Kingman, awaiting trial for first-degree murder.