A Texas man who was the prime suspect in the stabbing of his wife to death was found hanging from a tree. Officers from the Fort Bend County Sheriffs Office found Jhon Venegas Romero, 24, after a bystander said that they saw a person dangling from a tree.
Officers told Fox News that Romero was reportedly the prime suspect in the murder of his wife, 23-year-old Anyi Tatiana Montealegre Izquierdo, last week. It was reported that Izquierdo was found dead in the couple’s home in Richmond, Texas. Shortly after finding the body, police began a manhunt for Romero. Deputies told the outlet that the home is about two miles from the location where Romero was last seen alive.
It was revealed that officers managed to identify Romero based on clothing, tattoos and a passport that was found. Investigators noted that the clothes the man was wearing matched those of ones seen on the man on surveillance footage the day his wife was discovered dead.
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“While a thorough investigation is underway to ensure all protocols are followed, this appears to be a suicide,” said Sheriff Eric Fagan to Fox affiliate KRIV. “Our deepest condolences go out to all families affected by this tragedy.” Colombian Consulate General Andres Diaz stated that the tragedy was an unfortunate situation for the Colombian community.
During the manhunt, several relatives spoke with media outlets saying that Romero had grown up in Columbia’s jungle and were confident that he could evade officers’ efforts to locate him. The family also said they were worried that Romero would hurt other people if he remained free.
Several cousins told another outlet that they often intervened when Izquierdo and Romero would fight after moving to the US. According to the family, Romero had tried to kill her once before in their home county. The pair had reportedly moved to the U.S. so they might raise enough money to bring their family and child they had left behind in Colombia.
“I regret to hear the news of Romero’s death, like I would any Colombian native. However, I would have liked him to turn himself over to the authorities and face the law,” Diaz said to the outlet. According to Izquierdo’s family, they were hoping that Romero would have been taken alive. They also requested that their daughter’s body be brought back to Colombia.
“We take them step by step the process its not a short process, unfortunately. It will probably take 46 weeks to repatriate the body,” Diaz said. According to the official, the ongoing investigation has prolonged the return of Izquierdo to her family due to the amount of paperwork. Diaz has also announced that he will foot the bill for the woman’s funeral.
“Unfortunately this American dream ended really bad for this girl, and we are very apologetic,” Diaz said. Authorities have since stated that Romero’s body will undergo a post-mortem examination as well as several additional fingerprint checks to verify his identity.
