Farel Torres being arrested after fatally stabbing his girlfriend in Florida (Office of the State Attorney 18th Judicial Circuit).
A 38-year-old man in Florida faces a potential lifetime in prison for murdering the mother of his children after she ended their relationship, leaving her body on the floor while he took their kids to school.
A Seminole County jury took just 14 minutes to convict Farel Torres of second-degree murder in the killing of 34-year-old Vanessa Santiago, as announced by authorities.
The 18th Judicial Circuit State’s Attorney’s Office released a statement indicating that the deadly incident occurred on May 29, 2024, inside the couple’s apartment on Winter Woods Boulevard near State Road 436. That morning, prosecutors allege that Torres “appeared to prepare” for the murder by taking a large “steak knife” from a kitchen drawer and disabling the security camera in the bedroom.
Deputies reported they arrived at the apartment around 9 a.m. after Torres called 911, admitting he “stabbed his girlfriend” and stating the knife was still in her, with her being “beyond help,” according to a probable cause affidavit.
Torres was described as “upset” and “crying” on the 911 call, admitting, “I stabbed her in the head,” and “I stabbed her because I was mad.” When asked about the knife’s location, he replied, “In her head.”
Medical personnel at the scene pronounced Santiago dead shortly after arriving.
During a police interview, Torres stated he got up at 6 a.m. that day and said “good morning” to Santiago, who he claimed was angry because the bedroom cameras weren’t working. However, when directly questioned about Santiago’s fate, Torres reportedly broke down and could not provide further answers.
During the four-day trial, prosecutors said Torres had intentionally disabled the camera in the couple’s bedroom, where the fatal attack took place, but said footage from other areas of the apartment showed the couple fighting just before the attack.
“Video evidence also showed that Torres and Santiago’s two children were home to hear the fighting and stabbing — and one boy walked in on the act before Torres ushered him out of the room,” prosecutors said. “Santiago was breaking up with him and kicking him out of the apartment that she leased and paid for.”
A forensic search of Santiago’s phone also showed that after he killed her, Torres went back to the apartment and went through Santiago’s social media accounts before copying her credit card information and “transferring funds from her bank account to his.”
At trial, Torres’ defense attorneys sought a lesser charge of manslaughter by arguing that he killed Santiago in “a fit of passion,” but jurors were not swayed by the claim.
Torres is currently scheduled to appear in court for his sentencing hearing on Nov. 5, records show.
