Navy reservist David Varela stands accused of murdering his wife, Lina Maria Guerra, concealing her body in a freezer, and subsequently fleeing the country, according to prosecutors.
Varela faces charges of first-degree murder and hiding a corpse with the intent to obstruct justice, as reported by the U.S. Marshals Service. Additionally, he has been charged with military desertion, as he was under active-duty orders at the time of Guerra’s alleged death.
Varela has entered a plea of not guilty.
“Mr. Varela maintains his innocence and is prepared to let the judicial process unfold,” stated Carter M. Kovalcheck, Varela’s assistant public defender, in a comment to Oxygen. “I encourage the public to reserve judgment until the trial concludes.”
The investigation was initiated on February 4, following a missing person report for Guerra, who had not been seen since January 16, as indicated by the Virginia State Police.
Five days later, authorities conducted a search of the couple’s apartment, where they made a grim discovery: Guerra’s body had been wrapped in a black plastic bag and placed inside a freezer, according to the U.S. Marshals Service.
Authorities determined that Varela was the last person seen leaving the apartment and issued a warrant for his arrest. By then, however, he was nowhere to be found.
They later learned that Varela had fled to Hong Kong, triggering an international manhunt to extradite him back to the United States. According to an investigation by WTKR, before boarding the plane, Varela allegedly dropped off his wife’s three dogs at a friend’s house.
In April, Varela was arrested and extradited to San Francisco, where he made his first court appearance before he was transported to the Eastern District of Virginia, according to NBC News.
Now, prosecutors are suggesting that Guerra may have been alive before she was placed inside the freezer, according to WAVY TV.
The allegations stem from earlier claims that Varela beat and strangled his wife before concealing her.
A February autopsy determined that Guerra died from blunt force trauma to the head and asphyxiation, according to the U.S. Marshals Service.
“The medical examiner cannot say for sure when Miss Guerra died,” Norfolk Commonwealth Attorney Ramin Fatehi said, according to WAVY-TV, “whether it was before she went into the freezer or afterwards.”
During the June hearing, Varela’s defense team requested bond, arguing that Varela had no prior criminal record and that he wanted to visit his mother in Florida, according to 13News Now.
However, the judge “chuckled” while denying bond, according to the outlet, pointing out that Varela was a flight risk and a danger to his community.
The couple met in 2015 at a Florida restaurant, where Varela worked as a chief and Guerra a waitress, according to her family.
They always seemed “normal,” Guerra’s sister-in-law Paola Ramírez told NBC News, until Varela allegedly became violent. According to Ramírez, Varela once slapped his wife, information she said she received through a third-party.
Still, she said, Guerra was a loyal wife.
“She never, ever spoke ill of him,” Ramírez told NBC News. “She always spoke highly of David. She admired him greatly. She used to say that he was a very intelligent man and that she was very grateful to him.”