Police suspect the body found Sunday in a well on the outskirts of Jerez de la Frontera (Cádiz) belongs to a 64-year-old Iranian woman who has been missing since July 6. Even then, the police classified his absence as “involuntary, forced and life-threatening”. Investigators have arrested a man in his 70s who confessed Monday to committing the crime and has a criminal record for a similar offense for which he was previously in prison. In the vicinity of the missing woman, they are waiting for the results of the DNA tests. “I was already expecting the worst,” says a person who knew her and asked for anonymity.
The finding of the body in an irrigation well in the abandoned Cortijo de la Ducha came to light on Sunday, the National Police confirmed in a statement. Sources familiar with the case say the woman’s body was dismembered and covered with stones. Already on Sunday, the police reported the arrest of a man in connection with the case. This Monday, the detainee confessed, as RTVE submitted and the defense attorney and the police confirmed this to EL PAÍS. The lawyer has explained that the suspect, who is between 70 and 80 years old, said the testimony was brief and avoided giving further details of the case.
The confessed killer has “a history of similar acts, for which he served 15 years in prison,” according to sources familiar with the case. On Monday morning, police went to the Barriada Picadueña Baja area to conduct a search of property linked to the man, although the defense attorney does not know if any material related to the murder was seized. According to the same police source, the suspect and victim had “sporadic relationships.” The missing person himself told those around him that she knew the man and that she “didn’t trust him,” sources close to the missing person said.
Mesas de Asta is a quiet rural neighborhood in Jerez with a population of just under 600 and sits atop a vast archaeological site that has yet to be excavated. Everyone knows each other there. The owner of a hotel business remembers that the missing woman spent the last 15 years of her life in this district. “Everyone knew her here,” he says. In recent years, according to the same source, he lived first in a trailer and later for years in the nearby home of his sentimental partner, an elderly man with mobility problems who rarely left home.
The couple separated last spring and she no longer lived in the area. “We haven’t seen her here for about five months,” says the same neighbor. After leaving home, the woman ended up living at the Jerez Municipal Animal Shelter, her last known whereabouts, police confirmed when she reported her disappearance in July.
Jerez City Council confirms that the woman spent “occasional periods” in that municipality. On July 6, he disappeared from there, and one of his sisters living in Toledo reported his absence. Over the past few weeks, those close to the victim have been involved in an investigation that is being kept secret for the time being.
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The missing woman came to Spain more than 30 years ago after a political regime change in her country that prompted her to flee with refugee status. She is the mother of three children, one of whom has already passed away. “He’s had a tough life,” says the same source close to him. He has reported his existence over the past decade on Facebook, where he maintains up to five accounts, the oldest dating back to 2012. The most recent profile shared posts up until July 5, the day before his disappearance.
Later that month, the woman’s entourage received indications that she might be in different parts of Spain, but they felt that this was unfounded. On this Sunday, the police informed his relatives about the discovery of the body. It will be the DNA tests that will confirm the identification, although he admits he suspects a fatal outcome.