1-800-Mattress Founder's Wife Murdered, Cops Arrest Son

Nassau County police say that Kay Barragan, 65, was found dead in her Searingtown home yesterday morning and that her 38-year-old son Eduardo was charged with second-degree murder. Barragan was the estranged wife of 1-800-Mattress founder Napoleon Barragan; a company spokesman called it "a terrible tragedy for the family and for the company as well" and also added that Eduardo Barragan had a history of psychological problems. Police said the son was in his bedroom when they arrived.

A neighbor told Newsday that she saw a man and a woman in front of the Barragan house arguing on Tuesday afternoon, "I heard her say, 'No! No! No! No! Stop it! Stop it!'" Kay Barragan, who was found with "traumatic injuries to her upper body and her head area" had apparently been suffering from a number of illnesses. Her daughter told the Daily News that her brother Eduardo was schizophrenic; the Post reports that police are looking into whether he pushed his mother down the stairs.

Napoleon Barragan was not at the house; he arrived after being told of his wife's death. The company said he always credited her for helping him start the business by loaning him $2,000 (which she made from selling Avon products) in 1976. At its peak, 1-800-Mattress, which was also called Dial-A-Mattress, was a $170 million business but recent it filed for bankruptcy (Sleepy's will probably buy it).