Oxygen Insider Exclusive!

Create a free profile to get unlimited access to exclusive videos, breaking news, sweepstakes, and more!

Sign Up for Free to View
Crime News Breaking News

Two Suspects Arrested In Death Of Woman Dismembered And Left In NYC Parks

The victim, identified by police as Lisa Marie Velasquez, had seen her mother murdered in front of her at the age of 12.

By Jill Sederstrom

Two people have been arrested in the death of a woman whose body parts were stuffed into trash bags and left in Bronx parks.

The New York Police Department arrested Daquan Wheeler, 31, and Ciara Martinez, 30, Wednesday in connection with the crime. Each has been charged with murder, manslaughter, concealment of a human corpse and two other charges, The New York Times reported.

Police also identified the victim on Wednesday as Lisa Velasquez, 25, a women who had seen her own mother murdered when she was just 12, according to the Times.

Velasquez had been dismembered and parts of her body were discovered in two Bronx parks. Her head and torso were found in bags outside Crotona Park last Friday by a park employee and her arms and legs were found Tuesday at Baretto Point Park by three people who noticed a foot sticking out the bag, according to the Times.

She had been beaten to death and was described by the Medical Examiner's Office as having "multiple blunt-impact injuries of [the] head with skull fractures, the New York Post reported.

It was a tragic end for a woman whose life has been marred by violence.

"It's really heartbreaking the way he was tortured," her aunt Jacqueline Perez told The Times. "For Christ's sake, she didn't deserve that."

The victim's mother Marilyn Ginel, 37, had been killed by a man she was in a romantic relationship with in 2006. She had been nine months pregnant, according to a New York Times article written at the time of the murder. Ginel was beaten, stabbed and strangled in front of her three children, including Velasquez.

After the death, Velasquez had been raised by her grandmother. Her family last saw the 25-year-old on Aug. 21. Her aunt told the Times she had told them she needed to help a friend in danger.

Police have not provided a motive in the case.

"I want to thank the men and women of the 42 Detective Squad, Bronx Homicide and all who worked on the murder case of Lisa Marie Velasquez. Your collective efforts led to those responsible for her murder," Chief Dermont F. Shea wrote in a Tweet.

[Photo: Facebook]

Read more about: