A 29‑year‑old Florida man, Nicholas Ivey, has admitted to killing his 76‑year‑old grandmother, Patricia Dibella, at their shared home in Vero Beach, then using her car and credit cards to buy cigarettes and beer, according to law‑enforcement records and local media reports. Ivey has been arrested on theft‑ and fraud‑related charges, but has not yet been formally charged with murder as the case remains under investigation.
What police say happened
Deputies responded to a welfare‑check call at a condominium on Fairway Circle on February 2, 2026, after family members said they had not heard from Dibella since the evening of February 1. When they arrived Ivey was outside the unit and told officers his grandmother was dead inside; they then found Dibella’s body on a bed in the master bedroom and declared her dead at the scene.
Investigators say Ivey later told detectives that, on the evening of February 1, Dibella “came at him” with a steak knife and poked him in the back, after which he grabbed her, “snapped her neck,” repeatedly punched her, and stomped on her head while she was on the floor. He reportedly said he killed her at about 9 p.m. and then moved her body from the kitchen floor to the bed and cleaned blood from the floor and his clothing.
After‑the‑act behavior and arrest
According to the arrest affidavit, the next morning Ivey took Dibella’s wallet and credit cards, drove her vehicle to a store, and used her card to purchase beer and cigarettes before calling a relative and confessing to having killed her. He was taken into custody and, while still in the same sweatshirt he said he had worn during the attack, repeated his confession at the sheriff’s office.
Ivey was booked early February 3 on charges including grand theft auto, criminal use of personal identification, unlawful possession of stolen credit cards, and fraudulent use of a credit card. The Indian River County Sheriff’s Office has stressed the investigation into Dibella’s death is ongoing, and no homicide charges have yet been filed.
