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Estranged Husband In Custody After Body Identified As Missing Florida Woman
Police arrested the estranged husband of missing woman Mimose Dulcio two days before a body was found that turned out to be hers.
The body of a missing Fort Lauderdale city employee who disappeared earlier this month has been positively identified.
Mimose Dulcio, 39, vanished from her residence in an unincorporated section of Broward County on the evening of Nov. 10, a home that she had shared with her estranged husband, Jose Pacheco, 36.
He was charged with Dulcio’s murder days four later.
On Nov. 16 — two days after Pacheco's arrest — a then-unidentified body was discovered at 5528 NW 204th Street in Miami Gardens, an unincorporated part of Miami-Dade County less than 20 miles from Dulcio's home, as reported by CBS Miami affiliate WFOR-TV.
“We did get a call that, just to let us know that they found a body,” said Dulcio’s sister, Seminta Dulcio. “But they have to be able to do their procedures like DNA testing, or do dental or fingerprints for them to be able to confirm that is it her based on the evidence they have obtained.”
Seminta added they were “pretty positive” the body belonged to Dulcio.
Authorities with the Broward County Sheriff’s Office have now confirmed that the body has positively been identified as Dulcio's, CBS West Palm Beach affiliate WPEC reported.
The cause of death has yet to be determined.
Dulcio was reported missing on Nov. 11, after loved ones could not reach her, though she was supposed to have the day off from work in observance of Veteran’s Day.
Dulcio’s siblings, including Seminta, had to “bust through her door” to gain entry into Dulcio’s three-bedroom home. Inside, relatives found Dulcio’s cell phones smashed and stuffed between the couch cushions, as well as surveillance cameras that had been broken. Spots of blood were also found on a cracked television screen, and windows were broken, according to WFOR-TV.
Suspicions soon fell on Pacheco, who reportedly lived in a room separate from Dulcio at the same residence.
Seminta told authorities that her sister and Pacheco were married for all of 18 months before signing divorce papers the day before Dulcio’s disappearance, according to a new arrest report obtained by WFOR-TV. She also claimed Dulcio was unhappy that Pacheco still lived in the home but that she planned to save enough money to move out herself, according to the CBS affiliate.
Reports of marital tensions were substantiated after investigators allegedly found videos of Dulcio and Pacheco arguing, according to the recent arrest report. Pacheco had allegedly grown angry after learning Dulcio had browsed an internet dating site.
“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,” officials previously stated.
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On Nov. 14, Pacheco was charged with murder after “investigators found evidence that suggested Dulcio had been murdered in the couple’s home," and that her body had been moved in a vehicle the couple shared.
Pacheco was arrested in Hialeah and booked into the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center in Miami-Dade County to await extradition back to Broward County.
News of Pacheco’s possible involvement shocked members of the community, including their next-door neighbor, Dru Pardo, according to WFOR-TV.
“He was really cool, a down-to-earth guy, and we talked about dogs, and she was awesome,” said Pardo. “You don’t know what your neighbors are anymore.”
“One day, I did hear him screaming. He seemed jealous," another neighbor, Leonarda Martinez, told the station. "They were in the middle of divorce.”
Mimose Dulcio worked as an employee for the City of Fort Lauderdale, with colleagues creating a GoFundMe page on behalf of Dulcio’s family.
“Employees from the City of Fort Lauderdale are raising funds for our dear coworker, friend, and family member Mimose Dulcio,” said the fundraiser’s creator, Juan Rodriguez. “Mimose was a treasured member of the Development Services Department and worked tirelessly every day to serve her community while putting a smile on anyone who interacted with her.”
Jose Pacheco is no longer listed as an inmate in Miami-Dade, though as of Wednesday morning, he has yet to appear in jail records in Broward County. According to WFOR-TV, he was ordered held without bond and appointed an assistant public defender.
