A 61-year-old woman who was found dead in her home Thursday told a family member the night before that her son was “acting up” and that she was afraid, according to court documents filed Monday.

The woman’s son, Wayne Charles Phifer, has since been arrested on first-degree murder and is awaiting extradition from California where he was taken into custody on Friday.

While authorities declined on Monday to release the cause of death for Edna Sue Phifer, a search warrant revealed that a bullet fragment was found near a bed and that fragments were removed from Phifer’s head.

Edna Phifer was found in her home in the 8100 block of South Placita Gijon, near Old Spanish Trail and South Camino Loma Alta, after family members became concerned because they were unable to reach her or her 29-year-old son on Thursday, the document states.

She also had not shown up for work and she did not call in.

When deputies arrived at the residence, they knocked on the front door but got no response, the document said. They then went to a back patio door that was left unlocked and were able to make their way in.

Inside they found Edna Phifer dead in an upstairs bedroom, the document said.

Neighbors said they saw Phifer’s son in the garage Wednesday night and he was seen leaving the home just before the deputies arrived, according to the search warrant affidavit.

The victim’s brother said he spoke with his nephew Wednesday night around 8:30 p.m. and that he believed that Wayne Phifer was “acting strange,” the document said. He also said that his nephew has a history of being bipolar.

A short time later, Edna Phifer spoke with her brother over the telephone and said that “Wayne was acting up … and she was afraid,” the document said.

She did not stay on the phone long because she did not want her son to know that she was talking to her brother, according to the affidavit.

Other items seized at the residence include a long rifle, a shotgun, bullet rounds and drug paraphernalia, the document states.

Wayne Charles Phifer lived at the home with his mother, authorities said.

A motive for the slaying had not been released Monday.

Online court records indicate that Wayne Phifer has been arrested in the past on assault, disorderly conduct, criminal trespassing, theft and a drug paraphernalia charge.