-Editorial
El Centro resident and Imperial Valley farmer Michael Abatti has been arrested and charged with first-degree murder in connection with the fatal shooting of a woman in Pinetop, Arizona, following a multistate investigation involving law enforcement agencies in Arizona and California, authorities said.
Deputies with the Navajo County Sheriff’s Office responded at about 9:20 p.m. on Nov. 20 to the area of Bruin Way and Branding Iron Loop in Pinetop, where they found 59-year-old Kerri Ann Abatti of Pinetop suffering from a gunshot wound. She was pronounced dead at the scene, and investigators determined the death was a homicide.
Detectives secured and processed the scene and continued an extensive investigation in the days that followed. On Dec. 2, investigators served multiple search warrants at residences, properties, vehicles and camp trailers associated with the Abatti family in El Centro, California. The sheriff’s office said a significant amount of evidence was seized during those searches, some of which remains under forensic analysis.
As evidence was developed and reviewed, detectives identified Abatti, 63, of El Centro as the suspect in the killing. Investigators allege that Michael Abatti traveled from California to Pinetop on Nov. 20, where he is believed to have shot and killed Kerri Ann Abatti, then immediately returned to California.
The Navajo County Sheriff’s Office said detectives worked closely with multiple law enforcement agencies in both Arizona and California to establish probable cause in the case. On Dec. 23, investigators presented testimony and evidence to a Navajo County grand jury, which returned an indictment. A warrant for Michael Abatti’s arrest was subsequently issued by the Navajo County Superior Court.
Later that day, Michael Abatti was taken into custody at about 3:20 p.m. Pacific time on the 100 block of McCabe Road in El Centro by law enforcement officers. He was booked into the Imperial County Jail on a charge of first-degree murder under Arizona Revised Statutes 13-1105, a class 1 felony. Authorities said he is being held pending extradition to the state of Arizona.
In a statement, Navajo County Sheriff David M. Clouse offered condolences to the victim’s family and to others affected by the killing. He praised the cooperation among agencies and acknowledged the work of the grand jury that reviewed the evidence and returned the indictment.
Clouse also thanked Imperial County Sheriff Fred Miramontes and Imperial County District Attorney George Marquez for their assistance, as well as other Arizona law enforcement agencies that contributed to the investigation. He said the case reflected continued collaboration between jurisdictions in pursuing justice.
Authorities have not released information about a possible motive. The investigation remains ongoing.
Abatti was a well-known figure in Imperial Valley agriculture due to a yearslong legal fight with the Imperial Irrigation District over Colorado River water rights. He argued that individual farmers held constitutionally protected rights to specific quantities of water tied to their land, a position that briefly prevailed in a 2017 trial court ruling.
That decision was overturned on appeal in 2020, with higher courts ultimately affirming the IID’s authority to hold and equitably distribute the Valley’s water. Subsequent challenges were dismissed, bringing the dispute to a close and cementing the district’s control over water management in the region.
