A man who was "tired of living with his lies" called the police on himself to confess he murdered his landlord "for no reason" nearly 15 years ago and tried to cover it up over the years.
Tony Peralta, 37, borrowed a phone to call 911 and make the confession which eventually led to police closing a missing person case that had remained unresolved since December 2008.
The case of 69-year-old William Blodgett's disappearance had gone cold over time as his body was never found and nobody was arrested until Peralta decided to confess out of the blue a month ago.
On May 1, he called the Roswell Police Department in New Mexico when visiting a convenience store - and sat on a curb nearby while waiting for officers to arrive.
Police bodycam footage shows Peralta smoking a cigarette when cops arrive, and telling them he is tired of living with his lie and having feelings of guilt every single day.
He then gets up and, without being told, puts his hands behind his back to be cuffed - and as he is walked to a patrol car, he thanks the officers.
According to reports, officers were initially suspicious of his confession as Peralta could not remember many of the details of the killing - but he told them he could take them to the place where he buried his landlord's body.
During a search at the home, boots, bones including a skull and a phone belonging to the missing man were recovered - and he was later officially identified through dental records.
While sitting in an interview room at police headquarters, Peralta confessed he was high on meth at the time and there was no reason for killing his landlord, who, he said, was always nice to him.
He said: "I'm just tired of covering it up. I'm tired of living with my life, sir."
He then added: "I killed somebody, dude. I killed him with a screwdriver."
A video filmed at the police station shows Peralta sobbing as he discusses details of the murder with the officers.
Mr Blodgett was reported missing by his son Greg on January 3, 2009, after his family had been unable to reach the man for more than 10 days.
During a police investigation, it was discovered that the landlord had an issue with his tenant, later identified as Peralta, and tried to evict him at that time.
The criminal affidavit said Peralta was interviewed by detectives but "no new leads" emerged from the conversation.
Investigators searched the home and the neighbourhood, but nothing was found. Mr Blodgett's car was also still parked at the home and there were no withdrawals from his bank account, the affidavit added.
The police then decided to close the case saying all leads had been exhausted - until Peralta came forward last month.
He told authorities he had taken some pills and had been drinking before deciding to call the police and confess his crime.
He told officers: "He was a good man and didn't deserve what I did. He was always good to me and I took his life for no reason."
Peralta was arraigned on Tuesday on a charge of first-degree murder but did not attend the hearing.
He pleaded not guilty to the charge through his public defender, Ray Conley.
His trial date was set for October but a judge said it could change.
