A roommate, Francisca Martinez (also Moreno-Acevedo’s lover), was arrested. The same day Moreno-Acevedo vanished, Martinez was seen throwing a trash bag out the window. The bag contained bloodstained clothes and boots; a shirt had three stab-like holes.

Martinez took a mysterious expensive taxi trip that day, returning without her luggage. Two men were seen taking a blanket from Moreno-Acevedo’s building. Blood and broken fingernails were found in Martinez’s room, along with a broken knife handle that may match the holes in the shirt.

Martinez confessed to Moreno-Acevedo’s murder but blamed another woman, claiming a fight led to the stabbing. She said she fled in fear and later helped clean up the apartment at the request of her roommate (who reported Moreno-Acevedo missing; police don’t suspect the roommate).

The case is linked to Santeria, a Caribbean religion. Martinez, a follower, had spent a lot of money on a curse removal and plastic surgery, raising suspicion about her finances. Though Martinez confessed, police lack enough evidence to charge her with murder. She’s in jail and faces deportation. Moreno-Acevedo, a responsible cleaning woman from Colombia, is greatly missed by her family. Her case remains unsolved.