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Man Allegedly Killed His Mom And Threw Her Body In Dumpster, Where It Was Mistaken As Possible Halloween Prop
Parts of Maria Agnes Cuevas-Garcia's body, stuffed inside a suitcase and thrown in a dumpster by a car wash, made one person do a double take. They were unsure if they were seeing a body or a Halloween decoration.
A Colorado man is accused of killing his mother then putting her body in a suitcase and discarding it in a dumpster.
The investigation into the killing began after a suspicious item was spotted in a dumpster behind a car wash in Pueblo. Some blood and skin was visible. Initially, it was unclear if the item was part of an actual body or a Halloween prop, local outlet KKTV reports. The entire dumpster was towed from the scene before it could be determined that yes, a body had been dumped into the trash and stuffed into a suitcase.
The victim was a woman wearing an Air Force T-shirt and M&M candy shorts and she had a distinctive tattoo on of a female clown on one of her thighs, the Pueblo Police Department said last week. They posted video of a suspect dumping the body during the wee hours of Oct. 17.
The video shows a man struggling to lift what appears to be a heavy suitcase out of the back of a small sedan. He brings it to the dumpster and then throws it in before getting back into the car and driving away.
The body was found three hours after being dumped.
The victim has now been identified as Maria Agnes Cuevas-Garcia, 58; police say her son Antonio Cuevas, 36, has been identified as the man driving the car. He allegedly sold the car to a scrap metal yard shortly after dumping the body, according to the Pueblo Chieftain. The scrap yard contacted police after seeing the vehicle’s description on the news.
Cuevas was already wanted on a parole violation. He’s been arrested and is expected to face first-degree murder charges.
His wife, Melanie Ann Cuevas, was arrested Friday for a criminal impersonation warrant, according to KKTV.
Beverly Brown, a neighbor of the victim, told the Pueblo Chieftain that the mother was generous and loving.
“The last time she came over, she brought us warm bread. She’d make tamales and so many things,” Brown told the outlet.
"She was so giving," she added. "She had small dogs that she loved so much."
Brown said that one of her favorite hobbies was cooking with her granddaughter.
A possible motive for the crime has not been disclosed.
Anybody with information about this crime is urged to call Pueblo Crime Stoppers at 719-542-STOP (542-7867).
