A Pennsylvania man who was accused of murder last month was officially charged on Monday with also killing the victim’s wife and 1-year-old son.
According to WCAU, Jose Rodriguez, 61, has been charged with the murder of Geraldina Peguero-Mancebo, 31, Junior Cabrera-Colon, 31, and their son, Jeyden Peguero. Reading police stated that Rodriguez shot the couple because Peguero-Mancebo refused to leave Cabrera-Colon for him.
Rodriguez was accused of murdering Peguero-Mancebo and her son on September 12, one day prior to Cabrera-Colon’s death. Allegedly, Rodriguez picked up the mother and son in Reading and drove them to Ontelaunee Township, where he shot Peguero-Mancebo fatally while she held her son.
Berks County District Attorney John Adams stated that Rodriguez subsequently drove Peguero-Mancebo’s toddler son down the road, placed him face down in a shallow pond, and left him to die, reported WPVI.
“The defendant told detectives he was angered because he claimed that Geraldina was taking his money, and he admitted to shooting her in the back of the head,” Adams explained.
Cabrera-Colon, Peguero-Mancebo, and Rodriguez all worked at the same warehouse. Despite Peguero-Mancebo listing Rodriguez as her husband on her apartment application, the staff never saw him. Investigations revealed that Cabrera-Colon was Peguero-Mancebo’s actual husband, but Rodriguez permitted her to list him as her husband so Cabrera-Colon could avoid a background check.
A day after the murder of the mother and son, Rodriguez is alleged to have shot and killed Cabrera-Colon during a confrontation in Reading. Rodriguez reportedly admitted to killing Cabrera-Colon after confronting him over his relationship with his wife.
Rodriguez claimed Cabrera-Colon brandished a gun — which Rodriguez said he kicked out of Cabrera-Colon’s hands before picking it up and shooting him in the back of the head.
On September 13, Cabrera-Colon’s was found fatally shot in the head in some brush in Berks County. At the time, his wife and son were missing, but police had arrested Rodriguez on September 18 for Cabrera-Colon’s slaying.
On September 19, Peguero-Mancebo’s body was discovered 150 yards apart in a grassy area in Ontelaunee Township. The following day, Peguero was found partially submerged in a marshy area 150 yards from his mother.
An autopsy which listed the toddler’s cause of death as drowning also noted that mud was in his lungs, according to WPVI.
According to WCAU, Rodriguez showed detectives where he hid Peguero-Mancebo’s purse and cellphone. He reportedly also led them to the gun he used to kill her.
It is unclear whether Rodriguez will face the death penalty, though officials said it is a possibility. He remains jailed without bond.
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