Case Details
- Photo URLs:
-
- Missing Since:
- Missing Since 11/01/1995
- Missing From:
- Missing From Brooklyn, New York
- Classification:
- Classification Endangered Missing
- Gender:
- Female
- Race:
- Race Hispanic
- Date of Birth:
- Date of Birth 02/19/1987 (37)
- Age:
- Age 8 years old
- Height and Weight:
- Height and Weight Unknown
- Clothing/Jewelry Description:
- Distinguishing Characteristics:
- Distinguishing Characteristics Hispanic female. Brown hair, brown eyes.
- Details of Disappearance:
- Justina, a young girl living in Brooklyn, New York, disappeared in November 1995. She was often absent from school, and eventually her mother, Denise Solero, told the school Justina was moving. However, Justina never enrolled in a new school. Solero lied, telling neighbors Justina was living with her father, which wasn’t true.
A year later, a friend alerted the police that Justina might have been killed. Solero’s boyfriend, Luis Santiago, was arrested. Solero claimed Santiago had abused Justina for years and that he killed her. She pleaded guilty to helping hide the crime in exchange for testifying against Santiago.
Santiago confessed to accidentally killing Justina during a fight with Solero, but Solero gave a different account, saying Santiago killed Justina during a brutal attack after she refused a bath.
At trial, Santiago was found guilty of manslaughter, not murder, suggesting the jury believed his version of events. He was sentenced to prison. Solero received probation, a decision many criticized as too lenient, especially after it was revealed just how involved she was in Justina’s death.
Santiago and Solero said they disposed of Justina’s body in a trash bag in a vacant lot. Despite searches, her body was never found. The circumstances surrounding her disappearance and the conflicting accounts strongly suggest foul play.
- Agency:
- New York Police Department 212-694-7781
- Source Links:
This person was missing Missing Since 11/01/1995