The Murder of Yun Hi Moy
Warning, this case discusses murder, allegations of sexual assault, and allegations of abuse.
For this case, I watched the YouTube videos on this case created by Kendall Rae, Christina Randall, and Danielle Kirsty. These will all be linked in the sources section at the bottom.
Background
Sadly, not a lot is known about Yun Hi Moy or her life. Based on the events and the aftermath, a lot more is known about Yun Hi’s daughter, Isabella Guzman. I also couldn’t find any photos of Yun Hi.
Isabella Guzman was born in June 1995 to parents Yun Hi Moy and Robert Guzman. Isabella grew up in Aurora, Colorado, and was an only child.
They were a religious family and were Jeovoah's Witnesses. Robert and Yun Hi divorced when Isabella was about 4. Yun Hi went on to remarry a man named Ryan.
A Troubled Child
Isabella started having behavioral issues around the time she was 7. For a while, she was sent to live with her dad, Robert. Eventually, she moved back in with Yun Hi and Ryan.
Isabella’s issues continued at school, and she dropped out during her senior year. Many neighbors reported over several months that Isabella was sneaking boys in and out of her house. She had been dating someone for a while but they broke up before Yun Hi death.
By August 2013, Isabella was 18. She and Yun Hi’s relationship was very strained. Ryan said that Isabella would often threaten her mom, and Yun Hi was terrified of her daughter. Ryan said Yun Hi was drained and exhausted.
The Email
On August 27, 2013, Yun Hi and Isabella got into one of their biggest fights ever. It ended with Isabella spitting in Yun Hi’s face.
Yun Hi was devastated by this but woke up the next morning for work. On August 28, Yun Hi received an alarming email from Isabella. The email said: “You will pay.” Yun Hi was even more terrified of Isabella, so she called the police.
The police told Yun Hi that she could legally kick Isabella out of her house since she was 18. Isabella seemed to have calmed down after speaking to the police, but Yun Hi was still scared.
Yun Hi contacted Robert to try and speak to Isabella. Robert and Isabella had a conversation outside. Again, it seemed like Isabella had calmed down. Robert would later say that he felt like there wouldn’t be any issues as he believed that he had gotten through to her.
The Murder
On August 28, Yun Hi arrived home from work around 9:30 pm. She was exhausted and told Ryan that she was going to take a shower.
Ryan was downstairs in the kitchen waiting to eat dinner. While he was downstairs, he heard thumping and banging noises. He would later say that he thought Isabella was punching Yun Hi. Ryan also described hearing a blood-curdling scream.
He rushed to the bathroom and found the door slightly open. He could see his wife on the ground. Isabella slammed the door and locked it.
Ryan tried to enter the bathroom. He then saw blood seeping out from under the door. Ryan rushed downstairs and called 911.
Yun Hi was able to utter her last word: Jeovoah. Isabella then walked out of the bathroom with a knife. Ryan described Isabella as having a blank stare on her face. Isabella fled before the police and paramedics arrived 11 minutes later.
The Manhunt
Yun Hi was pronounced dead at the scene. She was found lying on the bathroom floor. She had been stabbed 79 times and her throat was cut. She had injuries to her head, neck, and torso.
Ryan described what had happened. The police began their manhunt and deemed that Isabella armed and dangerous.
The next morning, a call came to the police about a possible dead body in a car in a parking garage about a mile from Yun Hi’s home. The body was Isabella who was asleep wearing the same clothes from the night before and covered in Yun Hi’s blood.
When the police arrived there was no one in the car. Isabella was found walking around outside of the parking garage. She was arrested.
When a Killer Goes Viral
On September 5, the day of her arraignment, Isabella refused to leave her jail cell and had to be dragged out.
While she was in the courtroom, Isabella smirked at the camera and pointed at her eyes with her pointer finger. This went viral on TikTok in 2020 with the song “Sweet by Psycho” by Ava Max. There were also many comments about how attractive she was. Many creators made fan pages for Isabella and mimicked her movements from that day in the courtroom.
It was later revealed that Isabella was schizophrenic. Isabella pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. Everyone involved in the trial agreed that this was the proper plea.
The motive for this case was Isabella wasn’t killing her mom but a woman named Cecilia to save the world. In the email that she had written, she called her mom ‘Cecilia.’
Isabella was sent to the Colorado Health Institute until she was no longer a risk to herself or the community. In November 2020, Isabella petitioned the court asking for release.
Isabella Guzman in court
What Really Happened?
In an interview, Isabella claimed she had not been in her right mind and was no longer a risk to herself or the community. She said she wished she could take back what she had done. In the video, she also claimed that she had been abused by her family for years. Isabella said she left her religion at 14 which is why the abuse worsened.
She spoke about the scars on her hands that she had gotten from stabbing her mom.
Isabella said that she had been sexually assaulted in 2015 at the mental institution and reported it to the police. She said it had been in a closet when one of the male employees offered to look through some clothing with her. Isabella said there were 3 incidents with the same male employee.
In June 2021, Isabella was granted permission to leave for therapy sessions and other activities while wearing a GPS-tracking device.
Other
When Isabella was arrested, she claimed that she was a 15-year-old named Samantha. In her interrogation, she constantly asked the police to fingerprint her. It was confirmed that she was not Samantha and was Isabella.
The police did not believe anything that Isabella said in this interrogation. However, Isabella was most likely suffering from her mental illness and probably did believe she was another person.
FINAL THOUGHTS
I think Isabella should receive treatment at least for a few more years. She may believe that she is healthy enough to return to society but it would be terrible if she hurt anyone else or herself. I’m not sure if Isabella was abused or sexually assaulted but I do believe she didn’t know what she was doing when she killed her mom. It’s heartbreaking that Yun Hi was so terrified of Isabella and that they could never repair their relationship.
Sources
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNG7a0cy7hE - Christina Randall
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xP9xCcL2XIA - Danielle Kirsty
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=btwhOibr_9A - Kendall Rae
https://www.thereviewgeek.com/where-is-isabella-guzman-now/
