VERO BEACH – A 29-year-old Vero Beach man now faces murder and tampering with physical evidence in connection with the death of his 76-year-old grandmother, Indian River County Sheriff’s Office announced on June 12.
On Feb. 2, at about 8:15 p.m., sheriff’s deputies conducted a welfare check on Patricia Ann DiBella at her apartment in the 5000 block of Fairway Drive, Vero Beach, where she lived with her grandson, Nicholas Ivey, whom she welcomed earlier into her home, according to sheriff’s office reports.
Deputies spoke with Ivey who made at that time “suspicious statements about his grandmother being deceased in the residence,” according to a sheriff’s office statement.
Deputies found DiBella deceased inside the apartment and took Ivey into custody where he subsequently admitted to killing his grandmother, according to sheriff’s office reports.
Ivey was then charged with grand theft auto; criminal use of personal identification; unlawful possession of a stolen credit card; and fraudulent use of a credit card.
Ivey, while in custody at the Indian River County Jail, was formally charged with murder on June 3, following an investigation by detectives.
He is now being held in jail without bond, according to jail records.
“I am proud of the work our investigations team did to bring justice to Patricia DiBella and her family. No one should lose their life at the hands of someone they trusted and welcomed into their home. I encourage anyone experiencing domestic violence to contact law enforcement.” Sheriff Eric Flowers said in a statement.
The Sheriff’s Office encourages anyone who is or knows someone who is in danger to call 911; SafeSpace at 772-288-7023; or the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233.