New Jersey kindergarten teacher, Luz Hernandez, was reported missing on February 6 by her ex-husband Cesar Santana, who is also the father of their three children, after she failed to show up for work. Hernandez’s body was discovered in a shallow grave in Kearney, New Jersey, hours later.
According to an affidavit filed in court on Wednesday, a pickax, shovel, and bloodstained rope were discovered in a vehicle linked to Santana, as well as a large black and yellow bin with wheels and clear plastic sheeting with soil and black hairs on them. Santana was arrested on February 10 in Miami and extradited to New Jersey on Tuesday, facing multiple charges including murder.
Hernandez’s death was caused by blunt force trauma to the head and compressions to the neck. Santana had walked to Hernandez’s home in Jersey City on February 4, according to the affidavit, and was seen leaving an hour later with a black and yellow bin. On February 5, he was issued a motor vehicle summons after being spotted loading a black and yellow bin into a Honda in Kearney. Police later found bloodstains in Hernandez’s bedroom during a welfare check on February 7.
Santana has been charged with murder, tampering with physical evidence, hindering, and failing to dispose of human remains properly. The prosecutor’s office said that they were still searching for a second suspect in the murder, Lenier Miranda Lopez, who has been charged with desecrating human remains.
Hernandez’s family members said the couple had a tumultuous relationship, and Hernandez had confided in them that she feared for her physical safety. According to a GoFundMe page set up to support Hernandez’s children, she was a victim of domestic violence. Hernandez was a native of the Dominican Republic and had moved to the United States when she was five years old. Her GoFundMe page has raised over $49,163.
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