Michael Abatti, a 63-year-old multi-generational Imperial Valley farmer, was arrested in El Centro, California, and booked on a first-degree murder charge in the Nov. 20 shooting death of his estranged wife, Kerri Ann Abatti, in Pinetop, Arizona. A Navajo County grand jury returned an indictment and deputies searched Abatti's Southern California home on Dec. 2. The couple had separated in 2023 and were in active divorce proceedings that included contentious spousal-support disputes. Abatti has denied he could afford higher support amid recent poor farm years; court records show he later agreed to raise temporary payments to $6,400 a month.
California Farming Magnate Arrested in Arizona After Estranged Wife Found Shot
Michael Abatti's home is seen on Dec. 12, 2025, in El Centro, Calif. / Credit: Gregory Bull / AP
A prominent California farmer was arrested Tuesday on suspicion of murdering his estranged wife in a remote mountain community in Arizona, the Navajo County Sheriff's Office said.
Michael Abatti, 63, was arrested in El Centro, California, and booked on a charge of first-degree murder. Authorities said he is awaiting extradition to Arizona.
Investigators allege Abatti drove to Pinetop, Arizona, on Nov. 20, fatally shot his estranged wife, Kerri Ann Abatti, 59, and then returned to California. Kerri was found dead at her family's tree-shaded vacation home in Pinetop, where she had moved after separating from her husband in 2023.
Deputies searched Abatti's Southern California residence on Dec. 2 as part of the investigation, and a Navajo County grand jury returned an indictment Tuesday. Local media reported that deputies obtained an arrest warrant following the indictment.
Background and Family Dispute
Michael Abatti comes from a multi-generational farming family in the Imperial Valley region bordering Arizona. The family is known locally for farming enterprises, scholarship funds and civic leadership. Abatti has grown onions, broccoli and cantaloupes and served on the Imperial Irrigation District board from 2006 to 2010.
Michael and Kerri were married in 1992 and had three children. Kerri is a descendant of one of the first Latter-day Saints families to settle the Pinetop area in the 1880s.
The couple split in 2023 and were engaged in pending divorce proceedings in California at the time of Kerri's death. Financial disputes were central to the case: Kerri was initially awarded $5,000 a month in temporary spousal support and later asked the court to increase that to $30,000 a month and to award $100,000 in attorney fees. Court filings indicate she said she could not maintain her prior standard of living after leaving farm employment in 1999 to raise the couple's children.
Michael argued in legal filings that two poor farming years and shifting market conditions left him unable to afford the requested increase. He cited changing European crop-buying patterns related to support for Ukrainian farmers, higher shipping costs and adverse weather. At one point he noted it cost about $1,000 to grow an acre of wheat that sold for roughly $700. Court records show he later agreed to increase temporary support to $6,400 a month.
Additional Context
Abatti studied agricultural business management at Colorado State University. A 2023 book by a college friend recounts that Abatti nearly died in 2009 after a severe infection caused by a flesh-eating bacterium, which required hospitalization and a medically induced coma.
An attorney for Michael Abatti did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Authorities continue their investigation as criminal proceedings move forward in Arizona.
