Hear from neighbor who called deputies on Golden Gate Estates man arrested for murder

Reporter: Chris Cifatte Writer: Drew Hill
Published: Updated:
Michael Pritchard. Credit: Collier County Sheriff’s Office

WINK News first told you this Golden Gate Estates man who was arrested for second-degree murder last week. 

The Collier County Sheriff’s Office arrested Michael Allen Pritchard after finding a body buried on his property. Now, WINK News is speaking to one of Pritchard’s neighbors who called 911.

That neighbor told investigators that Pritchard confessed to one of her friends that he shot and killed his roommate then buried him in his yard. She then watched as the victim’s brother tried to uncover answers for himself.

“He told my friend they will never find him because ‘I shot him and buried him at the side of my house,'” she said.

That neighbor doesn’t want her name given out because she’s fearful for her safety. “In the beginning, I was nervous about calling because he’s a violent person,” she said.

The neighbors say Michael Pritchard is known to always have guns. “Bonified crazy. He shoots his house up at night. There are bullets everywhere. I don’t know why they haven’t taken that son of a gun out of there,” she said.

The victim’s family filed a missing person report, and investigators followed up. “In the end, I knew the brother was there. No doubt in my mind,” she said.

Authorities then found the victim’s body in a shallow grave close to the Golden Gate Estates home.

The neighbor is glad she was able to get closure for the family. “I felt really good knowing that I helped him to know where he was at,” she said.

Pritchard faces a second-degree murder charge, and he’s being held without bond.

Copyright ©2024 Fort Myers Broadcasting. All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without prior written consent.