The man who reported a woman missing last month, days before she was found dead in a Miami-Dade canal, is now charged with her murder, authorities say.
Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office deputies discovered the body of a woman, later identified as 37-year-old Nerida Martel, on Oct. 11 in a canal near SW 168 Street and SW 205 Avenue, prompting a homicide investigation.
Deputies were called to the area just before 4 p.m. after reports of a body floating in the water. When they arrived, deputies found Martel’s body and notified the MDSO Homicide Bureau, which took over the case.
Investigators said 40-year-old Saul Garcia Gonzalez reported his girlfriend, Martel, missing just days earlier. On Oct. 8, Garcia Gonzalez told the Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office that he, Martel and their 2-year-old daughter live together, and that he had last seen Martel two days earlier. He said he had been unable to reach her on her cell phone.
As detectives looked deeper into the circumstances of her disappearance, they determined that “the victim had been murdered by the subject,” Garcia Gonzalez, the MDSO said.
Detectives look deeper into Martel’s disappearance
A family friend told investigators that Garcia Gonzalez told them he dropped Martel off at a bus stop the morning of Oct. 6 so she could go to work; however, Martel’s employer told Garcia Gonzalez that Martel never arrived at work. The family friend said Garcia Gonzalez then said he thought Martel might be in the custody of Immigration and Customs Enforcement. After discovering Martel was not in custody, the family friend told Garcia Gonzalez to report his girlfriend missing.
Miami-Dade Sheriff’s Office
According to the family friend, Garcia Gonzalez told law enforcement that he last saw Martel at their home when he left to drop their daughter off at day care.
A friend of Martel’s told law enforcement that on Oct. 5, Martel had been looking for a place that she and her daughter could stay, which authorities said is an indicator she was “attempting to leave” and “end the relationship” with Garcia Gonzalez, the MDSO said. The investigator reported that Martel’s family members said Garcia Gonzalez was verbally abusive toward Martel.
During an Oct. 13 interview with a deputy, a K-9 unit also searched Garcia Gonzalez’ property. The K-9 handler said the cadaver dog had a “change in behavior on the exterior areas around the victim and the defendant’s apartment/living quarters,” the sheriff’s office said.
Investigators also discovered that on May 23, a 911 call was made from Martel’s phone. The comments on the call were a “hysterical female screaming for help on an open line with a child and a male heard yelling in the background” before the call was disconnected, authorities said.
Through further investigation, when Martel went missing, Garcia Gonzalez’ phone was tracked to and traveling around the canal more than once, and it never went to the bus stop where he claimed to have dropped off Martel, authorities said. Investigators also found video surveillance of Garcia Gonzalez’s car driving throughout the area of the canal.
On Wednesday, homicide detectives arrested Garcia Gonzalez and charged him with second-degree murder.
Miami-Dade SO said after Miranda rights, Garcia Gonzalez waived his rights to legal counsel and provided a statement denying having killed Martel.
