PHOENIX (AZFamily) — An autopsy report released Friday unveils gruesome new details in a stabbing at Maryvale High School last year that left a 15-year-old student dead.
The documents from the Maricopa County Office of the Medical Examiner show that Michael Montoya II, 16, was stabbed 15 times while inside a classroom on Aug. 19, 2025, around 11 a.m. Those included being stabbed in the back, neck and chest, where the knife hit his heart.
He also had bruises on the right side of his face, injuries to his mouth and cuts on his arms and legs.
Police said the suspect, Chris Aguilar, 16 at the time, smuggled a folding 4-inch pocketknife onto campus.
A classmate said Aguilar switched seats on the day of the stabbing so he could sit next to Montoya, police said. Investigators said Aguilar punched Montoya multiple times before the stabbing.
Montoya died at the hospital.
A school safety officer later detained Aguilar, who was booked into jail.
He later pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder. He was initially charged with second-degree murder but was later indicted on the more serious murder charge.
Witnesses told investigators that Aguilar stabbed Montoya multiple times because Montoya had stolen a gun from Aguilar during a meetup on the previous day, court documents said.
Montoya’s mother plans to sue the Phoenix Union High School District for $28 million, alleging negligence and saying the district eliminated school resource officers, deliberately reprogrammed metal detectors and ignored years of danger.
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