A 34-year-old Spring man faces murder and evidence-tampering charges after deputies found his mother's body inside their home in the Windsong subdivision.
Harris County Sheriff's Office (HCSO) deputies responded to a welfare check around 10 p.m. Sept. 1 at a residence in the 17900 block of Valley Knoll Drive, near Kieth Harrow Boulevard and Queenston Boulevard. Family members had called 911 after not hearing from their mother for several days, KHOU reported. She had not answered her door, phone calls or text messages.
Deputies forced entry into the home and found Arman Alexander Malik asleep in a bedroom, according to court documents. He appeared incoherent and possibly under the influence of an unknown substance. In a bedroom across the hall, a deputy detected the smell of a decomposing body.
Court documents describe what investigators found: a bloody sheet covering a large duffel bag. When the sheet was moved, deputies saw what appeared to be human skin and an arm inside the unzipped bag, ABC13 reported. Investigators also found blood pooling into the carpet beneath the bag and blood spatter on a nearby dresser.
The victim was identified as 73-year-old Dyna Guadalupe Sorto De Malik, Arman Malik's mother. Deputies noted blood under Malik's fingernails and scratches on his hands.
Investigators allege Malik tampered with the scene. According to court documents, three indoor security cameras at the home had been disabled. An exterior camera had been turned to face the house instead of outward.
Another camera was tipped on its side, its view blocked by a glass vase. The front door camera had its batteries removed and was placed face down, according to Click2Houston.
Dyna Malik's cellphone was found inside the home. When a detective entered the passcode once, the phone immediately locked for an hour. Investigators believe someone had already made multiple failed attempts to access the device, according to court documents.
Shaun Ward, a next-door neighbor, told KHOU on Monday, Sept. 7 that he had seen Malik outside only once or twice. "I was real shocked … I could never imagine her own son would do it," Ward said.
On Wednesday, Sept. 2, deputies executed a search warrant and transported the body to the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences. Malik was charged with tampering with physical evidence, specifically concealing a human corpse, on Friday, Sept. 4. He was hospitalized and later released.
Members of the HCSO Violent Criminals Apprehension Team (VCAT) arrested Malik on Monday, Sept. 7, and booked him into the Harris County Jail, Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said on X. Homicide detectives then filed an additional murder charge.
A judge set Malik's bond at $500,000 at a hearing Tuesday, Sept. 8, according to KHOU.
As of that date, Malik had not yet been appointed a public defender, Houston Public Media reported.
Court records show Malik has a previous conviction for robbery causing bodily injury. He received four years of community supervision in that case in 2010. His record also includes a DWI charge.
The Harris County medical examiner has not yet determined Dyna Malik's cause and manner of death. Malik is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.
Anyone with information about this case can contact the HCSO Homicide Unit or Crime Stoppers of Houston.
