Marlboro

Hotel Parking Lot Killing: ‘I Just Felt Like Killing Her,' Son Allegedly Said

Daniel Uhlman, who was arrested in the gruesome death of his mother, Nancy Uhlman, at a Marlborough Holiday Inn on Thursday, was also charged with stabbing her in 2014, sources told the NBC10 Investigators

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A man who was convicted of stabbing his mother nearly a decade ago was charged with killing her in the parking lot of a hotel on Thursday in Marlborough, Massachusetts, authorities said.

Fifty-three-year-old Daniel Uhlman, of Westborough, is being charged with armed assault to murder a person over 60, among other charges, in the death of his mother, Nancy Uhlman, who was 82.

Uhlman was also charged with stabbing his mother in 2014.

A man is facing multiple charges in the killing of his elderly mother, who was found dead in the parking lot of a hotel on Thursday in Marlboro, Massachusetts, authorities said.

Investigators were on scene for hours at the Holiday Inn on Lakeside Avenue Thursday as they worked to collect evidence at the scene of what officials had called an apparent homicide.

Daniel Uhlman was placed into custody shortly after police arrived on scene Thursday. A preliminary investigation has suggested there was an altercation in the parking lot, where Uhlman allegedly physically attacked his mother and hit her with her truck, prosecutors said Friday.

Uhlman appeared in court for an arraignment Friday, where gruesome details of what allegedly happened in the attack were read. He's accused of calling his mother to the hotel, where he'd been living; repeatedly slamming her head into the ground; stabbing her with a butter knife; running her over; and then reporting the killing himself.

Asked why he attacked his mother, Uhlman told investigators, "I just felt like killing her," according to the criminal complaint filed in Marlborough District Court.

His attorney told reporters after a court hearing, "He needs mental health treatment."

Bloody Scene at a Holiday Inn: 'Die, Die, Die'

Editor's note: This section contains graphic details from the crime scene.

The woman’s body was found in the back parking lot of the Holiday Inn at around 12:30 Thursday afternoon, according to the Middlesex District Attorney's Office. Crime scene tape and evidence markers were also placed on top of a blue pickup truck in the front lot.

Nancy Uhlman's body had "signs of significant trauma," Marlborough police said in the complaint, including the skin pulled off her head.

Daniel Uhlman, his hands and arms covered in blood, had walked into the Holiday Inn's lobby to report that he'd killed his mother, prompting the employees to call 911, the court document said.

When police arrived, the son recounted what happened, according to the complaint: About 12:30 p.m., he pulled his mother from her truck and slammed her head into the ground about 20 times, then stabbed her about 10 times before trying and failing to cut her throat. Then he got into her truck and drove his mother twice.

"I just felt like killing her," he told officers at the scene who asked why he attacked her, the court paperwork said.

Uhlman allegedly gave a more detailed explanation of why he attacked his mother to other investigators who arrived at the scene later. He said he "snapped," according to the court paperwork, planning to use a butter knife he'd grabbed the previous week in order to stab someone. He called his mother to the hotel and she arrived about 10:30 a.m.

Uhlman thought he was saying, "die, die, die," as he fatally attacked his mother, police said.

At a third interview, this time at the Marlborough Police Station, Uhlman again admitted to killing his mother, the paperwork said. He allegedly described wanting to kill her, calling her to the hotel, then talking to her in the truck before telling her to drive to the back of the hotel, which he knew was partially blocked from off by trucks.

In that interview, he allegedly told officers that he ran over his mother because he saw her trying to crawl or stand, then ran her over again to make sure she'd died.

Daniel Uhlman's First Court Appearance

In court, Middlesex County prosecutors asked that a murder charge be issued for Uhlman and requested that he be held without bail.

They said Uhlman had been staying at the hotel since May and had previously been hospitalized for mental issues — he has bipolar disorder, they said, and has been presenting signs of mental illness that don't make him fit to stand trial.

Uhlman hasn't taken his antipsychotic meds for 20 days, prosecutors said.

A judge ordered he be tested for mental competency.

Visitors React to Violence at Marlborough Hotel

Visitors were shocked to see an apparent homicide investigation on the hotel property.

“I mean this is tragic, I had no idea," Teri Barraso said, who was visiting Marlborough from New Hampshire. "I just came to stay at the hotel but definitely will be changing my mind now.”

“We went and came down, looking at the pool and there was a police officer there marking sure nobody came outside the boundary into the parking lot," Lyle Humpton said. "And when we pulled in to check in he was nice and said after you check in, please check out because there is a crime scene on the other side.”

Holiday Inn Releases Statement

The hotel chain released a statement to NBC10 Boston:

"We are aware of the incident that occurred in the parking lot of our property. We are deeply saddened by this event and our thoughts go out to those affected. We want to assure our guests and the public that we are fully cooperating with local law enforcement in their ongoing investigation, and all media inquiries should be directed to Marlborough Police Department."

2014 Stabbing in Westborough

Daniel Uhlman was previously charged with trying to kill his mother, in February 2014 in Westboro.

Then 44, Uhlman pleaded not guilty to what police described at the time as a violent and bloody confrontation at the home where they both lived on Haskell Street.

Nancy Uhlman, then 72, was stabbed in the head and torso, and had injuries to her wrist and face, but was conscious and told officers that her son was responsible, police said at the time. Investigators said the son had used four steak knives in the assault, breaking two of them in the process. A couple of the knives were discovered at the victim's bedside.

Daniel Uhlman wasn't at the family home when police arrived but was arrested after a state official monitoring a snow storm saw a man covered in blood walking down East Main Street and called police.

The man pleaded guilty that July, the Telegram & Gazette reported. He was sentenced to two-and-a-half years in prison and was behind bars from Feb. 14, 2014, to May 6, 2015, according to the Worcester County Sheriff's Department.

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