Alyssa Marie Lira (Orange County District Attorney’s Office).
A 23-year-old woman from California has been accused of a grisly crime: beheading her 55-year-old boyfriend after only two months of dating, then fleeing to Mexico, according to prosecutors. The woman, Alyssa Marie Lira, allegedly left her boyfriend’s decapitated body behind in her home.
Lira, an exotic dancer based in Anaheim, managed to evade authorities for five months following the August 2025 murder of Enrique Gonzalez-Carbajal. The Orange County District Attorney’s Office reports that she was eventually apprehended in Mexico on January 22. She now faces charges of felony murder and a felony enhancement for personal use of a weapon.
Kimberly Edds, the Director of Public Affairs, emphasized the authorities’ commitment to justice, stating, “It’s just a testament to our never-ending pursuit of justice and bringing her back and making sure she’s held accountable.” Edds expressed the tragedy of the situation, noting the unexpected violence from someone who was in a supposed relationship with the victim. “It’s heartbreaking for the victim, it’s heartbreaking for the victim’s family,” she added.
According to the District Attorney’s office, Gonzalez-Carbajal’s body was discovered in Lira’s residence. Anaheim Police were alerted to the scene on August 25, 2025, shortly after 2 p.m., as confirmed by police public information officer Matt Sutter.
Investigators quickly learned that Lira had fled to Mexico. Edds mentioned that Lira allegedly used a knife to commit the crime, though details about the type of knife remain unspecified.
Edds remarked on the brutality of the crime, stating, “This poor human … was brutalized.”
Anaheim police detectives were working with the DA’s Organized Crime Unit, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and the FBI’s assistant legal attaches in Mexico, as well as Mexican authorities, to locate and arrest Lira in connection with the alleged murder.
“She was returned to the United States,” Edds said, noting how Gonzalez-Carbajal’s family was notified after Lira’s arrest. “This is just a traumatic situation for everyone. For his family, for his friends, for everyone.”
Prosecutors and authorities have not yet released a motive. Lira is scheduled to be arraigned on Feb. 13 and she is currently being held at the Orange County Jail without bail.
“Hopefully she’ll remain in custody,” Edds said.
Speaking in a statement, Orange County District Attorney Todd Spitzer described how “nothing, not time, not distance, nor foreign borders” prevented authorities from tracking down and capturing Lira.
“Orange County law enforcement will continue to go the very ends of the earth to carry out our mission and hold criminals accountable for the heinous acts they commit,” Spitzer said. “This investigation and prosecution are a testament to the tenacity and the dedication of the Anaheim Police Department, of the Orange County District Attorney’s Office, and of our federal and international partners to identify a cold-blooded killer, track her down in a foreign country, and bring her back to the United States to face the full weight of the law.”
