Officials say Dearborn Heights man charged with mother’s murder was on probation for assaulting her

Aaron Akel charged with first-degree murder

DEARBORN HEIGHTS, Mich. – A Dearborn Heights man has been charged with the murder of his mother.

Officials said 45-year-old Aaron Samir Akel’s arrest comes one month after he was given probation for a separate attack on his mother.

Akel stood on camera before a judge Thursday as he was formally charged with the murder of 73-year-old Ibtisam Field. Her body was found in her home on Pardee Avenue Tuesday morning after police received a 911 call.

READ: Elderly woman found dead in Dearborn Heights home

READ: Dearborn Heights man kills mom after she asked judge to release him when he assaulted her, officials say

Prosecutors said Akel was the person who made call.

“I would indicate for the record that the defendant is the one who called 911 and admitted on the 911 phone call that he is the one who strangled his mother to death and in his words, he said, ‘I killed my mom,’” said the prosecutor.

A month prior, Field asked a judge to release her son and let her have contact with him following his assault on her last November. Akel was sentenced to three years’ probation and time served but the judge ordered him not to have contact with his mother.

After police found Field strangled to death in her bedroom, they arrested Akel at the scene.

Prosecutors believe she had been letting him with her.

Assault case

Akel was arrested Nov. 2, 2020, and charged with assault with intent to do great bodily harm and misdemeanor domestic violence, according to authorities.

He pleaded guilty to attempted assault with intent to do great bodily harm on March 16, 2021, and the misdemeanor charge was dropped, officials said.

His defense attorney asked for Akel to be released but the prosecution opposed. He ultimately remained in custody from November until his sentencing hearing on April 7, 2021, according to court records.

The sentencing guidelines called for a sentence of zero to 11 months behind bars, and he was given three years of probation with credit for 157 days in the county jail, authorities said.

Field appeared at the sentencing hearing and asked that her son be released, officials said. She told the court that she wanted her son to receive drug and mental health treatment. She wanted to be able to have contact with him again, according to officials.

The judge ordered that Akel have no contact with his mother, but agreed that he needed to receive treatment at a facility arranged by the probation department, authorities said.

He was released but he didn’t call his probation agent like he was supposed to, police said. The agent tracked Akel down and referred him to a facility but he didn’t show up, officials said. An attempt to follow up with him failed, according to authorities.


About the Authors:

Jason is Local 4’s utility infielder. In addition to anchoring the morning newscast, he often reports on a variety of stories from the tragic, like the shootings at Michigan State, to the off-beat, like great gas station food.

DeJanay Booth joined WDIV as a web producer in July 2020. She previously worked as a news reporter in New Mexico before moving back to Michigan.