Son’s deranged words before killing his mother in bed, cops say

⭕ Police found Loretta Parody with a stab wound to the chest

⭕ She told police what her son told her before the stabbing

⭕ A witness says suspect was acting strangely before the stabbing

HOWELL — A woman who was fatally stabbed in her bed identified her son as the suspect before she died, police said.

Loretta Parody, 61, was sleeping at her Porter Road home when her son Robert Parody, 25, stabbed her in the chest after midnight on Monday.

After she was stabbed, Loretta went downstairs and collapsed in the foyer of the home as another resident called police, according to the affidavit of probable cause.

She told officers her son kept coming into her room and told her that he was "very sorry" before stabbing her. Loretta was taken via ambulance to Jersey Shore University Hospital where she was pronounced dead.

Arriving officers found Robert outside the house and asked him who was hurt inside, according to the affidavit. He told them his mother and that she was dead. He was handcuffed and taken to Howell police headquarters, where he spoke to a mental health evaluator from Monmouth Medical Center. He was later taken to CentraState Medical Center in Freehold Township.

The affidavit did not disclose a specific reason for the stabbing.

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Dirt bike accident in 2015

The witness, who called police and told them she was the only other person in the home, said she woke up to the sounds of Loretta and Robert struggling with a knife.

She said Robert had a history of mental health issues and had been acting “strangely” earlier in the day. After the stabbing, she told Robert to go outside.

The witness told police that Robert was involved in a dirt bike accident in 2015 and suffered a head injury. His "mental problems" started after the accident, she told police. He was "chronically unemployed," the complaint stated.

Robert was charged with first-degree murder and a related weapons offense. He is being held at the Monmouth County Correctional Institution pending a detention hearing.

Loretta worked at the Century 21 Solid Gold Realty in Brick, according to her obituary. She was married and also had a daughter.

"Known to many as 'Beanie', she enjoyed spending time with her family and friends and will be remembered for her kindness, loving nature, and infectious laugh. She was the heart and soul of her family and will be dearly missed," the obituary says.

A viewing is scheduled for Thursday from 4 to 8 p.m. at the O’Brien Funeral Home on Burnt Tavern Road in Brick. Her funeral is Thursday evening.

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