Arrest made in fatal stabbing
NORRISTOWN » A Delaware County man who was awaiting trial on charges he assaulted and strangled his girlfriend during a domestic abuse incident in July, allegedly fatally stabbed the young woman during an escalation of violence while they were on a Montgomery County trail last weekend.
Freddy Remigio Mendieta
Pando, 23, of the 200 block of Copley Road in Upper Darby, was arraigned on Friday on charges of firstand third-degree murder and possessing an instrument of crime in connection with the alleged Sept. 11 fatal stabbing of his former partner, 23-year-old Karina Torres, along a section of the Schuylkill River Trail in Lower Providence, Montgomery County.
“She was stabbed multiple times, hidden in the bushes and overgrowth,” county District Attorney Kevin R. Steele said during a news conference on Friday where he announced the charges against Mendieta-Pando. “This tragic killing of Karina Torres is the worst end result of domestic violence.”
According to court documents and investigators, on July 9, Mendieta-Pando was charged with strangulation, simple assault, terroristic threats and harassment by Upper Darby police after a domestic incident at the Copley Road residence during which he allegedly strangled and punched Torres in the face. At the time, police noted visible injuries to Torres’ face and scratches and red marks on her neck, according to court papers.
Mendieta-Pando was ordered to stand trial on the domestic abuse charges after an Aug. 2 preliminary hearing and he remained free after posting $2,500 bail to await trial, according to court papers.
Investigators said Torres moved out of the Upper Darby residence the couple shared and on July 12 she obtained a temporary protection from abuse order against Mendieta-Pando. A hearing for a final PFA order had been scheduled for Sept. 16.
“But sadly, the defendant was able to reach her and ultimately killed her,” Steele alleged.
Steele was joined at the news conference by Upper Darby Police Superintendent Timothy M. Bernhardt and Lower Providence Police
Chief Michael Jackson.
Bernhardt called the incident “a tragic situation.”
The homicide investigation began at 11:50 a.m. on Thursday, when MendietaPando appeared at Upper Darby police headquarters and confessed to the killing, according to court documents.
Mendieta-Pando, who is Hispanic, used a cellphone translation application during which he spoke in Spanish into his phone and then showed Upper Darby detectives the translation that read, “I killed my partner,” according to a criminal complaint.
Mendieta-Pando continued to use the translation application to relay that he stabbed Torres on the Schuylkill River Trail where he claimed they had gone to discuss the pending domestic violence court case, according to the criminal complaint filed by Montgomery County Detective Heather Long and Lower Providence Detective Michael Nastasi.
“Mendieta-Pando stated that he stabbed Torres in the chest numerous times, threw the knife into the Schuylkill River and concealed Torres’ body under some trees,” Long and Nastasi alleged in the arrest affidavit, adding MendietaPando showed detectives on a map where the alleged fatal altercation occurred.
Upper Darby authorities
passed the information along to Montgomery County detectives and Lower Providence police, who searched the Schuylkill River Trail and at 1:25 p.m. Thursday found Torres’ body near the Betzwood Trail Head, lying face down in a wooded area about 15 feet off the trail.
An autopsy on Friday determined that Torres, the mother of a 4-year-old child, died as a result of multiple stab wounds and the manner of death was ruled homicide.
Steele said Torres’ family had been “seeking her and looking for her desperately.”
“They were desperate to find her. This is a really tragic way to find out where she is and what happened to her,” Steele said.
When Mendieta-Pando was interviewed by county detectives he claimed that on Sept. 11 he met Torres in Upper Darby and that he and Torres then drove to an area of the Schuylkill River Trail that he had frequented in the past. Mendieta-Pando allegedly claimed the pair arrived at the trail sometime after 5 p.m.
Mendieta-Pando claimed that while walking on the trail he and Torres argued and at some point she brandished a knife, according to court papers.
“Mendieta-Pando described how he was able to disarm Torres and he then used the knife to stab her repeatedly,” Long and Nastasi alleged in the arrest affidavit. “(Mendieta-Pando) acknowledged that after he disarmed Torres, she was no longer a threat to him, but stabbed her regardless. At one point, Mendieta-Pando held his hand over Torres’ mouth to keep her quiet.”
Mendieta-Pando allegedly described moving the victim’s body off of the trail into a wooded area and throwing the knife and Torres’ phone into the river before leaving the area and driving home to Upper Darby.
Authorities are continuing the investigation and reportedly are using divers to assist in locating the items.
Mendieta-Pando allegedly told detectives he removed his clothing and sneakers and placed the items into a trash can several blocks away from his residence.
“I cannot tell you how or why she was with the defendant on the trail that day because there was a protection from abuse order, there were bail conditions that said he was not allowed to be around her. What we know is he stabbed her to death and it was a brutal murder and that he hid evidence and he hid the body,” Steele said.
Steele emphasized the significance of MendietaPando being charged with strangulation just months before the alleged fatal stabbing.
“It’s a serious charge and it’s a serious identifier of danger. People who are strangled by a spouse or intimate partner need to know that they are in serious danger — they are likely to be killed by that person, as in this terrible case. Women experiencing domestic violence need to know there is help available. There are agencies in Delaware County and there are agencies in Montgomery County that are here to help people in these situations,” said Steele, specifically referring to Laurel House and the Women’s Center of Montgomery County.
The Women’s Center of Montgomery County is a volunteer organization that provides support to victims of domestic abuse and operates a 24-hour domestic violence hotline at 1-800773-2424.
Laurel House, a nonprofit organization that provides crisis intervention, a safe haven, supportive programs and resources for victims of domestic abuse, also provides a confidential, 24-hour hotline at 1-800-642-3150.
“Delaware County also has programs available. I think we need to keep it in the spotlight about domestic violence so we don’t forget about it, so anyone out there who needs help we can get them the help they need,” Bernhardt said. “In Upper Darby Township and Delaware County, we have the Domestic Abuse Project as well as within our department we have a victim advocacy position, a coordinator that can help in these situations. So please, if anyone knows anyone who is a victim of any type of domestic violence please speak up for them and get them the help that they need.”