Man faces murder charge in mother’s death

A 21-year-old man faces a murder charge in connection with the strangulation of his mother, Las Vegas police said.

He also is accused of concealing her death and fleeing to California.

According to an arrest warrant obtained Monday, James Lee Mosley moved to Las Vegas in early September to live with his mother, Yulandia Evette Kiser, 35 .

On Sept. 13, officers found Kiser's decomposing body in the bathroom at Sunflower Apartments, at 1500 Fremont St., north of Oakey Boulevard.

Kiser's body had been covered with a bed sheet, and baby powder had been sprinkled over the sheet, police said. A towel was placed at the bottom of the bathroom door, and partially burned incense sticks were found in the apartment, apparently to mask the smell, police said.

After receiving complaints about a smell coming from Mosley's apartment, a maintenance employee for the complex tried to investigate a "broken toilet." Mosley refused to let him inside and "was adamant there was no problem," the employee told police. Mosley moved from the complex several days later.

Clark County medical examiners were unable to determine the cause of death for Kiser because of the decomposition. Because of the suspicious scene, homicide detectives were assigned to the case.

Mosley was found in Moreno Valley, Calif., where he had been detained on warrants from San Diego, police said. When detectives interviewed Mosley, he denied involvement in his mother's death and said Kiser kicked him out of the apartment Sept. 6 or Sept. 7 after an argument.

Mosley said the scratches and bite marks on his arms must have come from his girlfriend, Ebony, police said, and indicated his mother's ex-boyfriend "Big" or "Ramel" might have been responsible.

Detectives interviewed Ebony, who said she met Mosley after he returned to Moreno Valley on Sept. 10 and noticed he had a "very foul odor about himself."

Ebony told police that she and her family confronted Mosley about Kiser's death and that he admitted to choking his mother "for about six minutes" until blood came from her mouth. She also told police that Mosley said he made up a story about a fake boyfriend in Las Vegas to deflect suspicion.

Police also obtained text messages Mosley is alleged to have sent to Ebony's sister, Antoinette, in which he admitted killing his mother and said he wanted to kill himself because of the stress.

A criminal complaint against Mosley was filed Sept. 17. He will be arrested and transported to the Clark County Detention Center to face the charge, police said.