Kingman man charged with torturing wife, boy previously convicted of murdering stepfather, records show

A Kingman man charged with torturing his wife and her young son was previously convicted of murdering his stepfather in Tucson, Arizona Department of Corrections records show.

Records show Jerry Gilligan, 69, was released in 2013 after serving 24 years in prison for theft, burglary, arson and first-degree murder convictions.

Media accounts archived online show Gilligan was convicted of beating and burning his stepfather, 78-year-old Walter Bopp. The Arizona Republic newspaper reported that Bopp refused to identify his assailant before he died a month after he was attacked in one of his Tucson health care stores.

Kingman police announced Gilligan’s arrest Tuesday. Rusty Cooper, Kingman’s deputy police chief, said investigators believe Gilligan has sexually and physically abused his 39-year-old wife and her 11-year-old son over a two-year period.

The investigation began Saturday after authorities learned the woman was being treated at a local hospital. Cooper said the woman alleged that Gilligan burned her with battery acid.

Cooper said police found evidence in their home corroborating the woman’s claim that she and her son were bound, sexually assaulted and videotaped over a four-day period.