Male killer says woman’s murder motivated by ‘trans’ jealousy

On April 28, 2023, 29-year-old Lauren Heike was on a solo desert trek in Phoenix, Arizona. A 22-year-old man suddenly attacked her, viciously stabbing her 15 times. She tried to escape through a barbed-wire fence but failed; investigators found defensive wounds on our hands and forearms. She was found dead the following day, and authorities concluded she had not been sexually assaulted. The assailant had simply wanted to kill her.

On October 2, Zion Teasley pleaded guilty to first-degree murder and will face a life sentence without the possibility for release. But there’s a twist in this grim tale: According to Teasley, he had murdered Heike in a fit of trans jealousy. Teasley believed he was transgender and was overcome with fury when he spotted her on the trail because he wanted to look like her. And so, he tracked her and killed her. He had never met her before.

“A 24-year-old conflicted about his gender identity viciously murdered a young woman after he flew into a jealous rage because of her beauty, cops said,” the New York Post reported. “Cops revealed Teasley said of Heike before his arrest, ‘That’s what I would want to look like.’ Investigators also said they found a photo of Teasley wearing an outfit similar to the one Heike was wearing when she was killed.

In the days before he killed the young woman, Teasley had written that he was transgender. “I have been battling with my gender identity and sexuality,” Teasley wrote in his diary, according to ABC15. “I am Christian, so this isn’t allowed. I want to live a life of serving god, but how can I with these and other sins in the way. I (know) I am forgiven for my sins. But it’s still a lot of pressure and it’s hard to maintain a good Christian mindset 24/7.”

After he murdered Heike, Teasley looked up photos of the young woman on her social media. The killer’s lawyers referred to him as a “she” in the courtroom...

Despite the alleged spontaneity of the Lauren Heike murder, Teasley had other crimes on his record. He had a history of being “aggressive toward female employees” and had lost one job as a result. He also pleaded guilty to a count of sexual exploitation of a minor after investigators discovered that he had been the recipient of child pornography several years ago. He also attacked a woman with a knife in January 2020.