Man Accused Of Trying To Kill Mom With Hacksaw: Charges Filed

CANYON LAKE, CA — Charges were filed Wednesday by the Riverside County District Attorney's Office against a man who allegedly intended to kill his 91-year-old mother with a hacksaw in Canyon Lake.

After he allegedly cut off half of his mother's foot last week with the tool, Mark Robert Vermillion, 61, has been charged with torture, mayhem, and attempted murder with a special allegation of elder abuse, and abuse of a dependent elderly adult with sentencing enhancement allegations.

If convicted on all charges, Vermillion could face up to life in prison, according to the charging document from the Riverside County District Attorney's Office.

Marian Vermillion was found Thursday after her son called 911 around 3 p.m. to report he had just tried to kill his mother at her two-story home in the 30400 block of South Fork Drive.

Deputies found the woman in her bedroom, with half of her right foot severed, according to sheriff's Sgt. Jeff Reese. She was taken to Inland Valley Medical Center in Wildomar, where she remained in critical but stable condition, according to the sergeant.

There was no word on a possible motive for the attack.

Mark Vermillon, who was arrested without a struggle, has no documented prior felony convictions in Riverside County.

He remains jailed at Larry D. Smith Correctional Facility in Banning and is due in court Thursday. No bail has been set for him.