Last month (August 2004), Realtor Garland Taylor was shot in the back of the head and left in a closet as he was showing a $1 million home to a prospect. Mario Lucas Chavez was arrested for the murder of the 74-year-old real estate veteran just a few days after the victim was discovered in the displayed home.

Mario Chavez, originally from Albuquerque, who more recently was living in Phoenix and Tucson, Arizona. Chavez allegedly pretended to Taylor and others that he was a corporate attorney from Arizona. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges. Chavez was charged with murder and tampering with evidence. He is also being investigated for other violent acts toward realtors. He is also being investigated for fraud involving the business community in Arizona, police said. He was being held in lieu of $2 million bond.

Garland Taylor was also a church deacon, and had worked for many years in real estate, and had opened his own agency. He was highly regarded among his peers, and was well-known and respected in the community.

According to information provided by the National Association of Realtors' Realtor Safety Council, more than 200 real estate agents have been killed on the job from 1982-2000 as they showed homes to strangers. An increase against stranger violence against real estate professionals in recent years has prompted the National Association of Realtors to create and distribute safety educational materials to all Realtors and to draw attention to the topic with an annual Realtor Safety Week.

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