Tensions were rising between two former service members of the armed forces in the middle of a quiet neighbourhood in the mining town of Helper, Utah. In October of 2019, the long-running dispute finally erupted into a violent altercation. In the programme “Fear Thy Neighbor: The Filth and the Fury” on Investigation Discovery, the developing dispute between Max Heino and his next-door neighbour Rikhard Tallent, which ultimately resulted in tragedy, is described in detail. If you were curious about what took place in this scenario, don’t worry; we’ve got you covered.
How Did Max Heino Die?
Born in April 1934 in the state of Utah, Max Edwin Heino was a native Utahn. After serving in the United States Army, he later found work in the mining industry in Carbon County, Utah. In November of 1954, Max wed Della Jean Wilson, and the two of them enjoyed a comfortable and fruitful marriage for well over half a century. He looked forward to spending time with his family, especially his grandchildren, and going fishing and hunting with them. In the years leading up to the event, Max and Jean had made their home in Helper, Utah, where they were enjoying a comfortable retirement.
The incident occurred on October 17, 2019, and both Max and his wife sustained injuries as a result of the fight that they got into with a neighbour. Max’s behaviour began to change the following day, and he required medical attention because of it. Jean, on the other hand, was fine. At that point, it was disclosed on the show that the elderly person, who was 85 at the time, had already been struggling with dementia and diabetes for some time. In the following days, he saw a precipitous decline in his health, and he passed away on October 25, 2019. An autopsy determined that the cause of death was an explosion in the brain caused by a blood clot that was caused by the attack. According to the episode, the medical examiner concluded that the death was the result of a homicide.
Was Max Heino Killed in the Incident?
Max’s next-door neighbour was a man named Rikhard Tallent. He, too, had served in the military, although he kept to himself the majority of the time. According to what was shown on the broadcast, the original source of tension between the neighbours was the mailbox. Rikhard had removed Heinos’ mailbox and replaced it with his own, which he had placed on the stand that was shared by both houses. Max and Jean chose to ignore the problem, but it continued to get worse. The way that Rikhard interacted with other people in the neighbourhood gave the impression that he was paranoid. Rikhard’s property came to look unkempt over time as a result of his accumulation of old tyres and other stuff, which resulted in waste overflowing into the Heinos’ property. This also resulted in a foul odour being produced.
Rikhard, on the other hand, took no action in response to this. The show claims that his house caught fire at one time, and as a result, the local authorities declared the property to be unsafe for human habitation afterward. Rikhard, on the other hand, chose to keep living there despite the absence of any form of running water, power, or plumbing. The tensions between Rikhard and the neighbours persisted for a while, until it appeared that Max had reached his breaking point. After noticing that Rikhard’s mailbox had fallen off its post on October 17, 2019, Max went and got it and put it back where it belonged on Rikhard’s property. As a direct consequence of this, a conflict took place.
On that day, Rikhard walked over to Max and Jean, who were furious about their mailbox being taken, and he found them sitting on their porch. Jean made an effort to interrupt the altercation that was taking place between Max and Rikhard, but she was shoved aside by Rikhard, which resulted in Jean suffering injuries to her face and knee. After that, Rikhard struck and kicked Max in the groyne, as well as in the legs. Later on, the granddaughter of Max and Jean reported that Rikhard had kicked her grandparents’ grandpa two to four times in the leg. In addition to that, he hit my granny in the face and pushed her against the fence.
A blood clot was determined to be the cause of death for Max a few days later, and the medical examiner determined that the clot was caused by the assault. After being questioned by the authorities, Rikhard revealed that he had assaulted Max. However, it took the authorities roughly five months before they escalated the accusations to homicide by assault, and it was unclear why it took so long for them to do so. According to the content of the episode, Rikhard made threats against other members of Max’s family in the time leading up to the trial.
How Did Richard Tallent Die?
In April 2021, at Rikhard’s trial, the defence argued that Max’s death was not the result of the assault but rather the previous health issues he had been experiencing. In May 2021, the jury reached the same conclusion, finding Rikhard not guilty of the murder but finding him guilty of two counts of assault due to their shared belief. He received a sentence of time already served and was released shortly after that. According to the episode, Rikhard was also charged with aggravated assault for his actions toward another member of Max’s family, although he did not end up serving any time for that crime either. Rikhard died in January 2022. He had been living with a brain damage for his whole life, which ultimately led to his passing at the age of 72.
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