Julie Garlock had just dropped her daughter off at school, her mind already shifting to the morning’s routine – squeezing in a quick gym session before heading home to unveil a cuddly surprise for her family.
The new puppy, a gift for daughters Mabel, 6, and Elsie, 8, who were on a trip with their father, Troy, waited eagerly at the house, and she couldn’t wait to see their faces light up.
As she drove over the hill, she glanced at Troy’s location on her phone. For once, he was actually on time.
Troy, Mabel and Elsie, had left his parents’ house in Utah early that morning, making the long drive to their new home in Show Low, Arizona. They had spent the past few days visiting Troy’s older kids from his first marriage, who had begged him to bring their little sisters along. They just missed them too much.
The last time Julie spoke to Troy, he sounded tired but happy, laughing about how he didn’t want to get back in the car for the long drive. He had decided to stay at his parents’ house in Mesa for the night. He FaceTimed her, promising they’d leave in the morning. Now, they were finally on the road.
But an eerie, hollow feeling settled in Julie’s chest. A sense of emptiness she couldn’t explain. It was fleeting, just a whisper of unease, but enough to make her shake her head, telling herself she was being silly. After all, Troy was on his way home.
Minutes later, as she stepped out of the gym, her phone screen lit up with missed calls – one from an unfamiliar number: Mesa Police Department.
A driver behind the wheel of a stolen vehicle had caused a catastrophic head-on collision in Mesa, Arizona. Among the victims were Troy and Elsie. Both died. Meanwhile, Mabel clung to life, her small body fighting to hold on.
The crash occurred on Monday, February 3, when a stolen Ford F250, driven by 29-year-old Damarya Zyberi, crossed into the median lane and collided with the Garlock’s Nissan Armada. Zyberi also died in the collision.
A third vehicle, a Nissan Sentra, was also involved in the crash, according to Mesa police. The unidentified driver sustained minor injuries and was not transported to the hospital, police said.
Prior to the deadly crash, Zyberi had a troubling criminal history. In 2018, he pleaded guilty to attempting to commit sexual abuse after groping a woman at a Tempe light rail station.
On February 1, just two days before the deadly accident, Zyberi was arrested again, Mesa Police confirmed to the DailyMail.com.
After attempting to assault another woman, he was released and allowed to return to the streets the following day.
‘Obviously, that guy was in a really dark place,’ Julie told the DailyMail.com. ‘This man, who clearly had demons, took my husband’s life. It’s not fair.’
She continued through choked sobs: ‘But I guarantee Troy was the first one to hug him up there. That’s just who Troy was. He’s probably helping that guy heal.’
Despite her immense grief, Julie said she believes in the need for prison reform rather than punitive measures for those struggling with darkness.
‘We stick these people in prison, and they don’t overcome their demons. They probably get worse in a place like that,’ she said.
‘If things were handled the correct way, I don’t believe he would have been on the streets to do what he did to our family.’
The Garlock family has received an immense wave of support from their community, with a GoFundMe campaign raising more than $130,000.
By some miracle, Mabel has almost made a full recovery from the injuries she sustained, which included two broken clavicles, a broken sternum, a broken humerus, six broken vertebrae, a broken pelvic bone, a lacerated spleen, and punctures in her lungs.
‘She’s not in her wheelchair at all. She’s running, she’s jumping, she’s bossing us all around. She is completely herself,’ said Julie.
The paramedic team wanted to come to the hospital to see Mabel because they were in such disbelief.
‘Based on what they saw at the scene, they were certain she was gone. Her pupils were blown, and she was posturing,’ said Julie. ‘They came to the hospital to see for themselves, as they couldn’t believe there was any chance she wasn’t brain dead.
‘Mabel should not be here. There’s no explanation for it other than Troy and Elsie helped save her for me, because they knew I couldn’t lose them all.’
Julie and Troy, both devout members of the Church of Latter Day Saints, were high school sweethearts who found their way back to each other after the end of their first marriages.
In the time leading up to the tragic accident, Troy had finally broken free from the grip of drug addiction – a battle that had followed him much of his life and most of their marriage.
‘He was my best friend. I couldn’t give up on him,’ Julie said.
‘I’ve never seen the man that he was since he got clean,’ she admitted. ‘He was finally free from everything, and he got to be his true self. It was so beautiful to watch.’
With newfound clarity, Troy was pouring his heart into building their dream home – a sanctuary in Show Low, three hours northeast of Gilbert, where they planned to raise their children and create a retreat for addiction recovery.
He deeply believed in the healing power of plant medicine, particularly ayahuasca – the one thing he swore had truly set him free and rewired his brain’s neuropathways.
But his faith in its healing properties stood at odds with the customs of their religion, leaving him caught between spiritual transformation and traditional beliefs.
‘We were trying to start a new lifestyle. He wanted to build a facility to help heal addicts because he said, ‘This is the only thing that’s ever worked for me,’ Julie shared.
Troy had already laid the foundation for their dream – building a teepee for healing ceremonies, horse stables and a thriving farm filled with animals that Elsie adored.
She dreamed of becoming a ‘rodeo queen’, and the family was just days away from bringing home her very own horse.
They had also bought Mabel and Elsie the puppy, planning to surprise them when they returned from their trip.
On their way back, exhaustion led Troy to spend the night in Mesa, a decision that unknowingly placed them in the path of the car thief with a dark past.
‘He stopped at the gas station to get the girls a treat, like he always did. They had just pulled out of the gas station, which is why I don’t think they were buckled – something that ultimately saved Mabel’s life,’ said Julie.
‘If she had been buckled, she wouldn’t have had a chance. Instead, she was thrown all the way to the back of the car, where they found her under luggage and a blanket.
‘I’ve never seen the car, and I never want to, but I’ve heard that the entire front was smashed.
‘The fact that she flew to the back, where it was the safest, is why she’s here today. It was the only chance she had.’
Through the pain, Julie said signs of Troy and Elsie’s presence have continued to appear.
She said Mabel frequently speaks of seeing them.
‘She’ll say things like, “Oh yeah, Daddy and Elsie were with us at my appointment yesterday” – we see lots of signs,’ said Julie.
Julie also said she consulted a medium and they believe that Elsie never left Mabel’s side while she was unconscious.
Julie said that at 11.11am or 11pm each day she wants people to remember Troy and Elsie.
She said: ‘If you happen to catch it on a clock can you eat a little something sweet for Troy and do your favorite dance move for Elsie and take that minute to celebrate the angles who helped bring Mabel back to our family or celebrate any miracles that you have seen in your own lives.’
Julie also had premonitions before the accident, ones that she’s only starting to piece together now.
‘I saw Mabel with two broken wings,’ she recalled. ‘She was a bird, and I was a bird, too. I was helping her learn how to fly again.
‘I had all my sisters and her sisters with me, and we were all telling Mabel, ‘You can fly, come on.’ And I remember thinking, ‘She’s got two broken collarbones, those were her wings.”
Days before her passing, Julia saw Elsie approach and touch a wild horse that refused to leave their property, an animal that no one else could approach.
‘She was a horse whisperer. She was that special,’ said Julie.
Despite the overwhelming loss, Julie remains steadfast in her mission to share Troy’s story and the healing he found. ‘I cannot deny this healed him, and I want the world to heal too.’
Right now, Julie and her family are staying with her sister in Gilbert, but she still feels called to carry out her husband’s dream and finish the house in Show Low.
‘I know that’s where I’m supposed to be, but I don’t know when I’ll have the strength to go back and do what we planned to do together. That’s the hardest part for me,’ she said. ‘Elsie loved that land.’
Julie remembers the final words Troy said to her before he left for Utah.
‘He was about to head out on his trip, and I was pouting because I would miss him for five nights. I told him how sad I was that he’d be gone for so long. He wrapped his arm around me and said, “Well, good thing we get to spend eternity together.”’