3 days Ago
The body of a Pennsylvania woman was found buried in a shallow grave in the woods on Thursday, and police are now searching for her ex-boyfriend. According to Philadelphia police , Melody Rivera, 29, was last seen in the Summerdale section of the city on Halloween and was considered an endangered person at the time. Maritza Garcia, Rivera’s mother, told NBC affiliate WCAU that she last spoke to her daughter over Facetime on the night of Oct.
31, and reported her missing the following day. An anonymous police source told the Philadelphia Inquirer that Rivera was driving with her girlfriend when Rivera’s ex, 29-year-old Geovanni Otero, attacked them. The source said Otero threw Rivera’s girlfriend out of the car and drove off with Rivera.
The car was found outside a junkyard days after the alleged abduction, according to a Facebook post by one of Rivera’s relatives. The police source also told the Inquirer that Otero was out on parole at the time Rivera vanished and that his GPS ankle monitor led detectives to Rivera’s body, which was covered with twigs and leaves. Philadelphia Police Deputy Commissioner Frank Vanore confirmed at a press conference on Friday that Rivera’s body was found in a shallow grave in the woods, according to ABC affiliate WPVI .
He added that police were informed that Otero had a dispute with Rivera before she went missing, and that is why authorities are looking for him. Rivera’s body was taken to the medical examiner’s office to determine the cause of death, a spokesperson for the Philadelphia Police Department told HuffPost. The spokesperson confirmed with HuffPost that as of Saturday, Otero is considered a person of interest.
He has a warrant out for his arrest for a parole violation unrelated to Rivera’s case. In a statement announcing Rivera’s death on Facebook, her sister described her sibling as a devoted mother who left a daughter behind. “For six agonizing days, we searched for her, hoping for a miracle,” the statement read.
“Tragically, Melody was found in a shallow grave in a local park, taken from us far too soon.” Related From Our Partner.
