Florida man accused of killing estranged wife who was reported missing

Authorities in Florida have charged a man in connection with the disappearance and murder of his estranged 39-year-old wife. According to Local 10 News, authorities said Mimose Dulcio was last spotted at her residence on November 10. 

In the wake of her disappearance, Dulcio’s husband, Jose Luis Pacheco, 36, told detectives investigating the case that he had not seen or heard from her in days, adding that they were also getting a divorce. The Broward Sheriff’s Office’s Violence Intervention Proactive Enforcement Response (VIPER) Unit ultimately collaborated with the Miami-Dade Police Department to arrest Pacheco on Monday night.

“Investigators with BSO’s Missing Persons Unit searched for Dulcio and investigated the circumstances surrounding her disappearance before the case was transferred to BSO’s Homicide Unit,” Gerdy St. Louis, who is the spokeswoman for BSO, said in a news release. “During their investigation, detectives met with Pacheco, who stated he had not seen or heard from Dulcio in a couple of days and that they were in the process of getting a divorce.”

Relatives of the deceased victim told the news outlet that they discovered her cell phone destroyed and placed in her couch cushions in an effort to conceal it. They, however, said that Dulcio’s credit cards were still intact. 

Detectives were ultimately given the green light to search the couple’s home and their shared vehicle after they got a warrant. And during the search, evidence that was found led investigators to suspect Dulcio was killed in the home before her body was driven away in a vehicle belonging to Pacheco, St. Louis said. Authorities are yet to determine the location her body was disposed of.

“Unfortunately, this case took a turn for the worst,” St. Louis said. “What we would have wanted was to find Mimose alive and well, however that was not the case, we hope the fact that we have made an arrest in this case that it brings some sort of justice to the family.”

In an interview with Local 10 News, the victim’s sister, Seminta Dulcio, said “something wasn’t sitting well with” her when she noticed Mimose Dulcio “didn’t answer the phone or respond to my wellness check text message.”

Pacheco, who has been denied bond, has since been charged with one count of second-degree murder. Authorities are also asking for information that could help them locate the victim’s body.