A mother of four who immigrated to the United States in pursuit of the American dream was found dead in a dumpster in Pennsylvania, and her “indifferent” husband has been arrested on suspicion of murder, family members and officials said.
Lucrecia Jadan Sumba, a native of Ecuador who moved to New Jersey in 2021 “in search of a better future for her family,” failed to show up for her job at Princess Nails in Elizabeth, according to her family's fundraising group. She was reported missing last Thursday.
The body of a 39-year-old mother was discovered Saturday in a dumpster in Coopersburg, Pennsylvania, authorities said. A spokesperson for the Lehigh County Coroner's Office told the Post that she died from “sharp impact injuries.”
Her husband, Rolando Corte, 42, was arrested and charged with first-degree murder, according to the Union County Prosecutor's Office.
Even though her mother has lived in Sumba for 23 years since she was a teenager, Korte said that when her co-workers panicked when she didn't show up for work, she said, “I was very curious about her whereabouts.'' There didn't seem to be any,” said the family's fundraiser.
Sumba's boss joined 18-year-old Danny, one of the mother's children who was missing at the time, in reporting her missing on Thursday, the day she took a day off and did not report to work. I did it.
Police then visited the house, questioned relatives living there and “informed the family that the house was a crime scene and they were not allowed to stay there until the investigation was completed,” the fundraiser said. said.
“Her children, family and close friends, as well as her boss and colleagues, were very confused and did not understand what was going on,” the fundraiser said. It is not yet clear why or how the mother was killed.
In addition to Danny, Sumba has three other children: Leonel, 21, Christian, 19, and Aidan Corte, 5.
Christian still lives in Ecuador, and his mother's parents, Jaydan Sumba and Rosario Sumba, hope to have her body flown onto a plane and give her a “honorable funeral,” fundraisers said.
The mother “began immigrating” to the United States in October 2021 “in search of a better future for her family,” the fundraiser said. “She first started working as a house cleaner and babysitter, then worked at a nail salon and was working towards getting her GED.”
“She began working hard to raise funds to take the children one by one,” it reads.
“Lucrecia Elizabeth is known for being a hard-working, caring and wonderful mother, a wonderful colleague, extremely responsible and always bringing smiles to those around her.
“She was also known as 'La Tia' at work, which was a nice nickname for her colleagues and clients as well.”
Her husband is being held in the Union County Jail. He is scheduled to make his first court appearance on Thursday.
