Mother's Concern Leads To Son's Arrest On Murder Charge

HOLIDAY, FL — A mother's concern over her son's absence and the presence of blood smears in her garage has led to her son being charged with premeditated murder.

On Nov. 1, Pasco County Sheriff's deputies were called to Baillies Bluff Road after three people walking in a wooded area near Key Vista Nature Park in Holiday discovered a burned-out car.

The car was identified as a Ford sedan but the body of the man inside was so badly burned, it could not be identified.

About an hour later, the sheriff's office received a call from a Port Richey woman concerned because she found blood smeared on a vehicle and some appliances in her garage on Mayfield Drive. She told detectives that her 21-year-old son, Michael Joseph Psilakis Jr. of Akron Avenue in Hudson, hadn't been seen by family members since Oct. 30.

While detectives were examining the blood, Psilakis' mother received a call from her son, telling her that he was on his way to her house.

A few minutes later, Psilakis pulled up in a stolen Toyota Tacoma. When detectives searched the pickup truck, they found a Glock 19 9 mm handgun that had been stolen in a residential burglary.

Psilakis had serious burns on his lower legs and, when detectives asked him how he got the burns, he told them that his girlfriend got angry and threw hot oil on him. However, detectives noted in the arrest affidavit that Psilakis was nervous and his story wasn't consistent with the type of burns he had on his legs.

When they attempted to take Psilakis into custody for possession of stolen property, he fought them and tried to run away after being handcuffed.

During the course of their investigation, detectives learned that Psilakis was acquainted with the man they suspected was found dead in the burned-out car.

They interviewed mutual friends of both Psilakis and the presumed victim, and discovered that the two men had been at a card game in New Port Richey on Oct. 29

The victim won $1,000 from Psilakis. When Psilakis demanded that the victim return the money, the victim refused, saying he won the money fair and square. Psilakis later told a witness that he planned to shoot the victim and get his money back.

After obtaining a search warrant for Psilakis' cellphone, detectives found Google searches with the phrases, "can u shoot through a seat," "can a bullet go through a seat," "someone shot through car seat" and "how to treat burns."

Evidence against Psilakis continued to mount when detectives interviewed his live-in girlfriend.

She told detectives that Psilakis texted her on Oct. 30 and said he had gotten third-degree burns on both lower legs after spilling gas on himself and then dropping ashes from a joint on his legs, causing the gas to ignite.

The following day, she opened and looked inside a safe in their home and found $20,000 in cash, drugs and a gold Cuban link bracelet. In the washing machine, she discovered the clothes Psilakis had been wearing the night of the card game with blood stains on them.

A friend of the victim confirmed that the bracelet was the same one she loaned to the victim Oct. 30.

In the meantime, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement tested the 9mm shell casings found in the roof and rear passenger floor board of the burned-out car and matched them to the stolen handgun found in Psilakis' possession.

On Nov. 6, the Pinellas County Forensics Laboratory positively identified the body as that of the victim. The sheriff's office is not naming the victim due to Marsy's Law, which protects the privacy of crime victims.

Psilakis was already in custody after being arrested Nov. 1 on charges of theft of a firearm; delinquent in possession of a firearm; vehicle theft; two counts of resisting arrest with violence; two counts of battery on a law enforcement officer; and escape. A premeditated murder charge was added to the list of offenses.