Court records indicate that the suspect wore the victim’s clothing and wig, compelling her boyfriend to assist in disposing of her body in a swamp in Florida.
Arnardo Cintron, aged 42, is accused of killing Berez Bonilla, a 41-year-old mother of two teenage sons. This is detailed in court documents.
Reportedly, he assaulted her in the kitchen, using a knife and stabbing her multiple times while shouting obscenities, as per the records.
Cintron and his girlfriend, who is also the victim’s cousin and had moved in with him, were allegedly spotted leaving with Bonilla’s boyfriend, Elga Davis II, just after the incident, according to court filings.
The suspect allegedly remarked to Davis that they would assist in “cleaning it up” or mentioned “next time,” as recounted by the boyfriend during police questioning.
Cintron is also said to have issued threats against both Davis and the teenage son of Bonilla.
Once they had cleaned up the kitchen and wrapped Bonilla’s body in a screen, the group placed her in a car inside a cardboard box, a process that reportedly took several hours.
At one moment, they were nearly caught by one of the victim’s sons, who had returned home but went back to bed after being assured that his mother was not there, as the documents state.
Later, Cintron allegedly told Davis to change into the deceased woman’s clothes while he donned her dress and a wig that was described as “frizzy and disgusting.” Surveillance footage later captured them driving away from the house.
Davis claimed that he was coerced into taking Cintron back to his apartment, where they discussed how to dispose of the body, with plans to meet someone referred to as “Tarzan.”
Cintron reportedly insulted the victim with a nickname related to an eye patch she used to wear. One suggestion from the group was to damage the body further to make identification more challenging, police noted.
Ultimately, they drove to a dense mangrove swamp in the Whedon Island Nature Reserve, where they left Bonilla’s body and other evidence like murder weapons and blood-stained towels, authorities stated.
Bonilla’s cousin, Santiago Bonilla, has also been arrested for allegedly assisting in the disposal of the body.
According to the police, Cintron attempted to provide Davis with some of the victim’s money in exchange for silence.
Once Cintron and his girlfriend left, Davis reported the incident to law enforcement, bringing them to where the bodies had been left, as per the records.
Both Cintron and his girlfriend were taken into custody on August 18. Cintron faces charges of second-degree murder while his girlfriend is charged as an accessory after the fact.
They are both recorded as having unlawfully concealed a human body, tampered with physical evidence, and interfered with witnesses.
The sheriff has not clarified whether any charges will be filed against Cintron concerning his alleged collaboration with “Tarzan” in disposing of the body.
