A pickaxe, shovel and blood-stained rope were found in a vehicle linked to the ex-husband of a murdered New Jersey teacher days before her body was found in a shallow grave, court documents revealed.
Cesar Santana, 36, appeared in court on Wednesday where he faced multiple charges, including murder, in the death of Luz Hernandez, 33, a kindergarten teacher at a Jersey City charter school.
Shocking new details from the affidavit revealed that a search of Santana’s Honda found bloodied items, including a large black and yellow wheeled trash can, a pickaxe, a shovel, clear plastic sheeting and a rope, NBC News reported.
While some of the items were bloody, others had black hair and there was dirt on the tarp.
Santana was arrested in Miami on February 10 and extradited to New Jersey Tuesday night. A second suspect in the murder, Lenier Miranda Lopez, 26, is still wanted by police.
Cesar Santana, 36, appeared in court on Wednesday where he was charged in the death of Luz Hernandez, 33, (pictured), a kindergarten teacher at a Jersey City charter school
New chilling details revealed a search of Santana’s Honda found bloodied items, including a large black and yellow wheeled trash can, a pickaxe, a shovel, clear plastic sheeting and a rope
Police are still searching for Leiner Lopez, 26. Anyone with information on his whereabouts is urged to contact the Hudson County Attorney’s Office
Hernandez, a beloved kindergarten teacher and mother of three, was reported missing by Santana and family members on February 6 when she failed to show up for class. Santana is the father of her three children.
Hernandez’s body was found hours later in a shallow grave in Kearney, New Jersey. Her death was caused by blunt force trauma to the head and compressions to the neck, according to the affidavit.
The investigation later found that Santana was seen on February 4 walking to Hernandez’s Jersey City home and walking away from the house an hour later with a black and yellow trash can, the affidavit revealed. It has not been published who saw this.
The next day, during a February 5 traffic stop, Santana received a motor vehicle subpoena after he and a second person were seen loading a black and yellow trash can into a Honda in Kearney, New Jersey, which had an expired had approval.
Two days later, on February 7, Jersey City police officers conducted a social check on Hernandez and discovered a faint odor of bleach, according to the affidavit. They found bloodstains in the bedroom and cleaning supplies.
Santana was arrested on Friday and taken into custody with the help of the US Marshals Service after authorities tracked him to Florida.
Lopez is still wanted by police in connection with the case, and the Hudson County Attorney’s Office is asking anyone with information about the fugitive to come forward. He is accused of desecrating human remains.
Santana was charged with murder, obstruction, tampering with physical evidence and failing to dispose of human remains in the manner required by law, the Hudson County Attorney’s Office said in a statement.
Hernandez’s body was found hours later in a shallow grave in Kearney, New Jersey. Her death was caused by blunt force trauma to the head and compressions to the neck
Hernandez, a beloved kindergarten teacher and mother of three, was reported missing by Santana and family members on February 6 when she failed to show up for class. Santana is the father of her three children
The teacher’s sister told ABC7 before Santana’s arrest that the couple had been separated since November, but he stayed at their home and apologized for being unable to go
The sister of the murdered teacher told ABC7 before Santana’s arrest that the couple had been separated since November, but that he stayed at their home and kept making excuses about why he couldn’t go.
Her sister also claimed the couple had a tumultuous relationship, with Hernandez frequently confiding in family members that she felt she was in physical danger.
Hernandez was first reported missing after she failed to show up for work at a charter school on February 6, prompting police to conduct a welfare check at her Jersey City home.
A murder investigation was then launched when blood spatter was found in her home, with the grisly discovery leading to the issuance of a search warrant.
Hours later, Hernandez’s body was found in an industrial area of Kearny surrounded by trucking companies, an area three miles from her home.
Hernandez’s cousin revealed that when asked about Hernandez’s whereabouts after her disappearance, Santana said she “did go out.”
On a GoFundMe page set up for Hernandez’s children, a family member wrote that she was a victim of domestic violence.
According to Hernandez’s fundraising page, she was originally from the Dominican Republic and moved to the United States at the age of five. Your site raised over $49,163.