Left (Clockwise from top left): Geraldina Peguero-Mancebo, Junior Cabrera-Colon, and their son Jayden (GoFundMe). Right: Jose Luis Rodriguez (Reading Police Department).
A Pennsylvania family that went missing earlier this month was found dead over the course of a week in different locations.
The case unfolded on September 12 as per a press release from Reading in Berks County, marking the last time the 33-year-old Junior Cabrera-Colon, his 30-year-old wife Geraldina Peguero-Mancebo, and their 1-year-old son Jayden were seen. Cabrera-Colon was discovered the following day at Baer Park in Reading with a fatal gunshot wound to the head.
Once police learned of Cabrera-Colon’s wife and baby, the duo was reported missing and at risk. Tragically, the bodies of the mother and son were located days after — Peguero-Mancebo on September 19 and Jayden on September 20.
On September 18, investigators interviewed 61-year-old Jose Luis Rodriguez, who reportedly confessed to the fatal shooting of Cabrera-Colon and his subsequent disposal. Rodriguez has since been apprehended and faces charges including first-degree murder, third-degree murder, corpse abuse, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, possession of a criminal instrument, and evidence tampering.
While specific details on the deaths of Peguero-Mancebo and Jayden remain undisclosed, the Berks County District Attorney’s Office mentioned in a press release that an autopsy determined both deaths to be homicides. Peguero-Mancebo was discovered in a grassy field in Ontelaunee Township, with Jayden found “partially submerged” in a marsh roughly 150 yards from his mother’s location.
No one, including Rodriguez, has been formally charged concerning the deaths of Peguero-Mancebo and Jayden. A GoFundMe effort is underway to return the family’s bodies to the Dominican Republic and mentions that the couple was also parents to three other children, aged 8, 10, and 13 years.
Rodriguez remains in jail without bond and is scheduled to appear in court on Oct. 3 for a preliminary hearing. The Berks County District Attorney’s Office said it will provide an update to the case at a press conference on Sept. 29.
