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00:07She was a very good artist, her apartment was very clean, but there was a broken wine
00:16glass on the floor. This girl fought for her life. There was blood in the tub, blood in
00:29the sink. The suspect was known to the victim or was let in willingly. We looked at the surveillance
00:39images. They were dressed head to toe in black. She was on different dating apps and social
00:48media. He's with us, he's looking, he's showing real emotions, but he was the last person that
00:56saw her. Smartphones have a treasure trove of information. People do things on their smartphones
01:03that they will not confess to their parish priest. The police were able to follow this vehicle
01:12using surveillance cameras. Her friend said in her apartment over her bed, did you see
01:20the portrait? That's him. He's the guy. He did it.
01:44Greenwich, Connecticut, Beverly Hills of the East Coast. It is the best of the best. Beautiful
01:52homes right on the water. A wealthy enclave, a lot of celebrities and heads of corporations,
02:00yacht clubs, golf clubs, large mansions on 10-acre plots. Greenwich is the home to the Rockefellers.
02:09Homicides are very rare. That kind of thing usually doesn't happen. On the morning of February 5th,
02:192019, shortly after 8 a.m., workers riding in the Department of Public Works truck noticed a red
02:27suitcase discarded on the side of the road in the backyard of a wealthy estate. They pull over,
02:34grab the handle of the suitcase. It was very heavy. This guy believed that there was something good
02:41in it and decided to open it. A few minutes later, they call 911. Everyone went lights and sirens to
02:58the scene.
02:59Myself and the detective lieutenant responded to the area. We blocked the road for a good five miles in each
03:10direction.
03:12There were news helicopters overhead filming. Everybody knew something bad had just occurred.
03:24The area was off to the side of the road and backyard of a very wealthy mansion.
03:31There were small trees and branches camouflaging the discovery of the suitcase itself.
03:38When we approach the suitcase, we see the body of a lifeless girl.
03:47The victim was frozen. She was folded up into a fetal position. Her hands behind her back, hogtied with twine.
04:05In my 20 years, to have the body of a young female stuffed into a suitcase was pretty shocking.
04:18Ice crystals and ice around the nose and the mouth, that indicated she was breathing when she was inside
04:26that suitcase. There was trauma around her head area and her cheeks, a contusion on her forehead.
04:35It looked like a golf ball. She also had abrasions on her hands, broken fingernails.
04:42She had a t-shirt on. It said, Amir Lavi, love of life.
04:50She took a beating and this girl fought for her life.
04:54This was a beautiful young lady, you could see. Somebody loved this girl.
05:03She was someone's daughter. Where did she come from? Who did this?
05:28New Rochelle, it's a small town full of parks. Beautiful town to live in means everything to me.
05:44We're not a big family. It was my four kids and I. My two older ones.
05:52Valerie and Sal. I was 21 when I had Belle. I didn't know if it was going to be a
06:01boy or a girl.
06:02I just felt like my baby had to be a Valerie. It fit her perfect. It means valor, valuable.
06:13She became my best friend as a newborn.
06:21My son, Sal, is just a year and a few months younger than her.
06:26She was 14 months older. We had a lot of fun growing up. She was the bossy one. I kind
06:32of just did whatever she said.
06:39Val had that maternal instinct with him. You know, always taking care of him and guiding him.
06:50Divorce is hard on kids. When her dad moved out of the house, Val was like around 10. She was
06:58very devastated.
07:00Our dad was always in our life. We have a great relationship with him.
07:03But not having a father in the household is different than having a father.
07:08She loved her dad. Before the separation, Val didn't even know what depression was.
07:15Never showed any signs of unhappiness. It was hard for her, but she just went through panic attacks through depression.
07:23But she really wanted to be happy. That's why I always say she was a warrior.
07:31She had that artistic soul. That ability to paint and create.
07:39Like, I was just always so infatuated with drawing. Val just loved drawing, too.
07:45She was just very talented. Like, very talented.
07:49She worked hard Monday through Friday, even Saturdays. But Sundays are a family day.
07:56It was simple things. Going to the park, to the movies. I felt always blessed.
08:06She mentioned she wanted to move out.
08:13It was a little, crappy, tiny apartment, but she just made it so her.
08:17I would just sometimes go there and just hang out.
08:20She was, like, one of the few people that I just loved doing that with.
08:24I remember her calling. She had broken up with John, her boyfriend.
08:29They had been together a few months.
08:32She was in love with him, but she felt like it was going too quick.
08:36And she was a little bit, you know, nervous because he wasn't staying over anymore.
08:41She's alone in her apartment.
08:44She tells me I'm having panic attacks. I'm feeling very, very scared.
08:50I'm confused. I'm like, okay, I know she broke up with John.
08:54But what is actually going on?
08:57And I said, mommy, just come and spend the night.
09:01And she refused. Then I said, everything's going to be okay.
09:05If you need me, you know, you can call me.
09:15The following day, I called her at 8 in the morning, and she didn't pick up.
09:20And I called her at 10. Nothing.
09:24And I did kind of get that little feeling.
09:27Why isn't she picking up? Why isn't she calling me back?
09:31I remember calling Sal, and Sal went to get his dad.
09:39I wasn't worried. I was just thinking this typical mom stuff.
09:43But after a while, it was obviously starting to get weird.
09:46Couldn't get in touch with her.
09:48They went to her apartment.
09:51They met John, her ex-boyfriend.
09:54He was heading over there to apologize to Val.
09:58Your sister's missing. Here comes her boyfriend with flowers.
10:03They called me. They're like, she's not here.
10:06Sal tells me there's glass on the floor.
10:10And the only thing that are missing are bed sheets.
10:15You don't want to think the worst.
10:19It's like, what's going on with my daughter? Like, what's happening?
10:24That night was probably one of the worst nights, because the not knowing.
10:29I slept in her basement.
10:30You know, if she got home, I wanted to be like the first one to see her.
10:36The very next day, we went to her job.
10:39She wasn't there.
10:42Panic starts to ensue.
10:46Her ex-boyfriend was able to log into her email.
10:50There was activity from Chase.
10:52We were like, okay, so she's alive.
10:55It was weird.
10:56We don't know where she is.
10:58You just broke up.
10:59In the back of our minds, it's like, could you have anything to do with it?
11:07We decided to go to the police and make a report.
11:13We told them she has been hospitalized for her mental health.
11:17Teenage years, they took it very serious.
11:20My family started with the posters.
11:23They went around New Rochelle, the train station.
11:27I posted on Instagram.
11:28They got a lot of attention.
11:30Thousands of shares.
11:31I was just thinking, why are you doing this, Val?
11:34You guys worried?
11:36We started calling hospitals.
11:38We thought she was getting mental health for herself.
11:41They wouldn't give answers because it's private.
11:46I was nervous.
11:47I was scared.
11:48She's gone through depression and there's a breakup.
11:53Is this too much for her?
11:55Because she had taken her own life.
12:01He and Valerie had argued the day before she went missing.
12:06We see glowing areas of blood on the wall.
12:10And a few drops on the mattress.
12:13Something had happened to Valerie here.
12:35January 30th, 2019, Valerie Reyes had not returned home.
12:43The Reyes family became concerned.
12:47They contacted the nurse show police department and reported her missing.
12:53Her mother related that Valerie had issues with anxiety.
12:58They were concerned she could have harmed herself.
13:05I called hospitals.
13:07They wouldn't give any answers because it's private.
13:12The family had started to gather telephone information, cell phone data on Valerie as well as banking records.
13:23Police detectives began doing traces on her banking information.
13:29They saw someone drain her bank account of several thousand dollars.
13:35Something was very suspicious.
13:42Detectives request banking information from all of the withdrawal points and the ATM locations.
13:48We then start to interview people closest to her.
13:55John told the investigators he and Valerie had argued the day before she went missing.
14:03He was upset that she was seeking more freedom in their relationship.
14:08He did not want that.
14:10He said he had actually left a bouquet of flowers at her door.
14:16He also had passwords for Valerie's banking information.
14:21When he's released, all of this was looking very suspicious to the investigators.
14:27Every single day I would message her.
14:34Please come back.
14:38You mean everything to me.
14:46February 5th, 2019.
14:49Six days after Valerie's disappearance.
14:54A Greenwich, Connecticut road crew was doing a cleanup on Glenville Road.
15:03I was notified by my detective lieutenant that there was a body in a suitcase.
15:18As we approached the scene, I looked down the embankment.
15:23I could see the suitcase.
15:26We approached and see the victim.
15:34She was a young 20-year-old female.
15:38Medium-length black hair.
15:41Several tattoos.
15:41She was taped with this packing tape from her chin up to the top of her nose and wrapped multiple
15:51times.
15:52The days leading up to the discovery of the body had been frigid.
15:58We had several days of single-digit temperatures.
16:01The body was literally frozen.
16:04The medical examiner arrived at 11 a.m.
16:10We removed the victim from the suitcase and examined the body.
16:15She had ice crystals about her face and neck and her bare feet.
16:23We noticed her hands had some minor abrasions on them.
16:27A fingernail broken on one of the hands.
16:31This girl fought for her life.
16:39We had received information on the Greenwich Police Department social media account that indicated there was a missing female from
16:50New Rochelle, New York named Valerie Reyes.
16:54Valerie Reyes appeared to have similar physical descriptions and several similar tattoos.
17:04At the medical examiner's office, we obtained very clear, identifiable photos of numerous tattoos that the female had on her
17:17body.
17:19Then we asked to meet with the family.
17:24That night, I get a call.
17:27They were telling me they found a body.
17:30Well, me and my dad get to City Hall.
17:33They bring us into the room and separate us.
17:37They showed me a picture of her arm, of her tattoo.
17:40It was our last name.
17:42That's when I knew.
17:45He immediately burst out into tears, screaming, punching walls, saying, that's my sister, that's my sister.
17:53It was terrible.
17:56It was just the worst day of my life.
18:00I am shattered.
18:04It's like my entire soul just went numb.
18:07Mm-hmm.
18:10We now know who this female was.
18:15Now we can center all of our investigative machine into solving this.
18:22Who had access to her?
18:24Where did this occur?
18:28Valerie's family led us into the apartment.
18:34Left at the door was a large garbage bag that was filled with all of her ex-boyfriend John's clothes.
18:44Her laptop and cell phone were also missing.
18:50The family had also indicated there was a broken wine glass on the floor, which her father had cleaned up.
18:59As we looked further within her apartment, one of our officers observed a small drop of blood on a wall
19:09and another drop of blood on the comforter.
19:14Something had happened to Valerie here.
19:18This was a crime scene.
19:36On February 5th, 2019, road workers found a suitcase buried in a wooded backyard.
19:46Folded up into a fetal position inside this red suitcase was Valerie Reyes, a young female missing from New Rochelle,
19:56New York.
20:01Our team of investigators go through that apartment with a fine-tooth comb.
20:07We had photos of every inch of that apartment.
20:12We then decided to search using luminol.
20:19When we apply the luminol, we see glowing areas of blood on the wall.
20:27There was a lot of blood in the tub, blood in the sink.
20:33So much that you could clearly make out a hand print.
20:39The areas that reacted with the luminol were collected to determine whose blood it was.
20:47There were no signs that there was any forced entry.
20:51The suspect was either known to Valerie or was let in willingly.
20:57So Greenish detectives zero in on Valerie Reyes' ex-boyfriend, John.
21:04John indicated that he and Valerie had argued the day before she went missing.
21:10He had packed up all his belongings in a garbage bag.
21:14She was done with him.
21:16Another red flag was that he knew Valerie's login for her banking information as well as several other social media
21:24apps.
21:26Reviewing some of Valerie's social media, we learned Valerie had actually blocked John from contacting her.
21:34This immediately piqued our interest.
21:36We have an ex-boyfriend who does not take rejection well, is trying to get back with Valerie, leaving her
21:44flowers.
21:48We asked him to provide his cell phone records and give us access to his cell phone.
21:54We also asked him for his DNA and fingerprints immediately for comparison.
22:01We had to look further into all of these details to either include him as a person of interest or
22:07try to eliminate him as a suspect.
22:13We went to her job obtaining video footage of when she left work on January 28th and took a bus
22:24back home to Nershow.
22:26We checked that to see if there's anyone she came across that seemed suspicious or out of the ordinary.
22:34There's nothing.
22:40We started questioning her friends and family about her dating history.
22:45We interviewed her mother.
22:49Who else is a suspect?
22:51Honestly, John, yes, right away, right?
22:54You think because that's the person that had that romantic relationship with my daughter.
23:00But he's with us, he's looking, he's showing real emotions.
23:06Valerie's mother gave us access to Valerie's cell phone account.
23:11Smartphones have a treasure trove of information.
23:14People will do things on their smartphones that they will not confess to their parish priest.
23:20Then we reached out to one of Valerie's friends named Naomi.
23:24She knew pretty much all of Valerie's life.
23:28Naomi gave us a list of people that Valerie had dated at the time.
23:34There was a guy named Joe, who was a mechanic, and there was a guy named Javier.
23:41She was dating on different dating apps and social media.
23:46She was very social.
23:49This really expanded the number of suspects that could be her killer.
23:56At this point, all options are on the table.
24:02Looking at Valerie's phone information, we saw that on January 29th, her phone was put into airplane mode at around
24:103 o'clock in the morning.
24:12Afterwards, we see that there were several withdrawals of Valerie's money from her bank accounts.
24:19At this point, it became even more important to find out through bank surveillance video who was making those withdrawals.
24:27Was it Valerie?
24:29Was it Valerie?
24:30Or was it someone else?
24:34New Rochelle Police Department obtained bank surveillance images.
24:39As we looked further at the surveillance images, something was wrong.
24:47They were dressed head to toe in black clothing and covering their face.
24:53It appeared to be a male that was withdrawing the money.
24:58That was not Valerie Reyes taking that money out.
25:01This guy may be involved in killing Valerie.
25:08The FBI gets involved.
25:10She was abducted, kidnapped, and moved out of state.
25:16We knew that he flew the country and we wouldn't get our hands on him.
25:35The investigation at this point is zeroing in on this unknown male making ATM withdrawals from Valerie Reyes' bank account.
25:45The initial withdrawal was from the New Rochelle bank about January 29th, about 5 a.m. in the morning.
25:52The guy enters the bank disguising his face.
25:55He makes the withdrawal from the bank.
25:58He then exits into a small black SUV.
26:02The New Rochelle Police Department were able to follow this vehicle using surveillance cameras.
26:10They were able to get a license plate off the license plate reader within the city.
26:18This is a huge moment in the investigation.
26:22The registration information returned to a car sharing app.
26:26It was a black CRV.
26:27It was a zip rental car out of Queens, New York City.
26:32We then served the rental company with a subpoena to get the rental information.
26:37A short time later, we obtained the DNA results from the Westchester County Forensic Lab.
26:45The DNA results that were sampled from the bathroom area indicated a mixture between Valerie and an unknown contributor.
26:55This eliminates the ex-boyfriend, John, as a suspect.
26:59This leads to further questions as to the identity of this unknown male.
27:04We now focus solely on who's driving the vehicle.
27:09We obtain the rental information for the Honda CRV and learn that the name of the renter is named Marco.
27:16We run license information for Marco.
27:19His general physical characteristics are consistent with the unknown man making the withdrawals on Valerie's ATM bank account.
27:29Finding Marco was top of the list to do.
27:34We learned from the rental car agency that the exact times that this rental car was rented out matched the
27:43exact times that Valerie went missing.
27:47By then, we obtained the entire rental information.
27:54His rental agreement listed names of other drivers, we began to scour through that information.
28:02We saw the name of Javier.
28:08That immediately clicked in my mind as a person that Valerie had dated before.
28:15I reached back out to her friend, Naomi.
28:19She said Valerie broke it off with Javier about a year earlier.
28:26That made him very upset to the point where Valerie had to block him on her phone so that he
28:32couldn't contact her.
28:34I felt he was the guy at that moment and told her we needed a photo of Javier to confirm
28:41it.
28:43Naomi had asked me if I had been in her apartment.
28:46I said yes.
28:48She said, well, over her bed, did you see the portrait that she drew of me?
28:54I said yes.
28:56She said, well, beneath that was a portrait of Javier that Valerie had drawn.
29:01Naomi then took the further step of finding Javier on his social media account.
29:09And I immediately recognized the profile picture being the same sketch that I had seen when I was processing Valerie's
29:16apartment.
29:18That was an amazing moment.
29:22That's him.
29:24He's the guy.
29:25He did it.
29:27Javier, who Valerie had dated, was the same Javier listed on the rental agreement.
29:37After reviewing a background investigation on Javier Da Silva, we learned Javier was a Venezuelan nationality.
29:48He had come into the United States on a student visa, which he had overstayed.
29:53There was currently a deportation order for him.
30:01We obtained the surveillance video from that rental location.
30:07We were able to see the unknown male from the ATM withdrawals without his face covered.
30:14That photo was Javier Da Silva Rojas.
30:20We had to make sure that the timeline matched up 100%.
30:26There was a big disagreement about going and interviewing Marco Padro.
30:34The decision was made to go and arrest Javier on the deportation charges.
30:41And interview Marco Padro after Javier's arrest.
30:47We immediately sent a surveillance team down to the apartment building that was listed on the rental car agreement.
30:57There was a big concern we could spook Javier Da Silva into running.
31:03But I was very nervous.
31:06He knows he's an overstay already.
31:09We knew he would flee the country and we wouldn't get our hands on him.
31:27Detectives identified a man who may believe abducted and brutally murdered Valerie Reyes.
31:34A young, outgoing girl found in Connecticut tied up in a suitcase.
31:43The FBI gets involved because we believe that she was abducted, kidnapped and moved out of state.
31:50And we had a concern.
31:52The suspect, Javier Da Silva Rojas, a Venezuelan national, is at risk for fleeing the country.
31:58The vehicle that Javier Da Silva rented was identified.
32:04Now we have to find this guy.
32:08Using the rental records, we were able to track Javier Da Silva Rojas to the location of Queens, New York.
32:18There was probably six buildings that housed five to six hundred apartments in each.
32:26It was a big undertaking.
32:30We had to put eyes on him at that building.
32:37February 11th of 2019, late at night, my surveillance team observed Javier doing laundry in the laundromat.
32:50The officers ran over to grab him.
32:53The officers ran over to grab him.
32:54Javier was arrested on the varsity and deportation order.
33:03He was brought back to the Nureshell Police Department, where he was placed in an interview room.
33:11Marco was interviewed after Javier's arrest.
33:15It turned out that Marco worked as a security guard in the building.
33:21We learned he would rent out these zip cars to other tenants of the building under his name.
33:31And that was his only involvement.
33:34At that point, we were able to eliminate Marco from the investigation.
33:40We threw a search warrant on Javier's apartment.
33:42And we were able to get his phone.
33:44We threw a search warrant on his phone.
33:47During the search, they actually found Valerie's identification and credit card in his apartment.
33:57We interviewed Javier on February 12th, and he stated that he had found a card on the sidewalk in New
34:07York City.
34:08You made a transaction on Canal Street?
34:10I used the ATM.
34:11How many times?
34:12He had also found the PIN number and that he did withdraw money from that bank account.
34:18What was the name you saw on that card?
34:20I don't remember.
34:21Then how did you know it was a female?
34:23The investigators showed Javier the name to that bank account was Valerie Reyes.
34:29They asked him if he knew her.
34:31But you don't remember the name?
34:33He said no.
34:34We knew he was lying.
34:36We had that picture of Javier that Valerie had drawn of him.
34:42The investigators told Javier that, yes, you did know her.
34:48Matter of fact, you had dated her, and we know that.
34:53Well, then they showed a photo of Valerie when she was found.
35:00At that point, he backtracks, and he started minimizing like most people in that position would do.
35:05I didn't do that.
35:07I didn't do that.
35:08What happened here?
35:10Did you intend to do this?
35:12He stated that they had consensual sex, and she had fallen and hit her head.
35:22As she was unconscious, he said he checked her for breath.
35:26She wasn't breathing.
35:28At that point, he saw a red suitcase outside, grabbed the suitcase, brought it in, tied up Valerie and taped
35:37her.
35:37Did you cover her mouth?
35:39Yes.
35:39With what?
35:40With a tape.
35:41And placed her into the suitcase.
35:43You were trying to fit her with a bag?
35:45Yeah.
35:46I didn't want to do any bad compare.
35:48We don't believe when he says that they had consensual sex.
35:52You had sex on the couch or on the bed?
35:54You're leaving the room.
35:55And that she fell and hit her head.
35:58She had a large hematoma to the forehead, multiple cuts on her hands.
36:04She fought for her life.
36:06If he thought she was dead, you don't have to tape her mouth.
36:11He taped her from her chin to the top of her nose with packing tape.
36:17If she's unconscious, knocked out, or dead, you don't have to do that.
36:24I'm certain that this is a murder, but in order to prove the federal crime of kidnapping,
36:30we still had to establish that she was moved out of state and alive in New York
36:36and had died in the state of Connecticut.
36:39The ultimate penalty for this in the statute is the death penalty.
36:43We needed proof beyond reasonable doubt what he did in order to put him away.
36:48If you plan to do this, you're going to be in jail for a long time.
37:04Crime suspect Javier de Silva Rojas attempted to tell investigators that Valerie Reyes' death was an accident.
37:14But the evidence photos don't lie.
37:16He beat her, bound her, stuffed her in a suitcase.
37:22Federal murder charges are hard to come by.
37:25In order to make it a federal kidnapping resulting in a murder case,
37:29we need to now prove that he took her across state lines.
37:33So we had to establish that she was alive in New York
37:37and had died in the state of Connecticut.
37:48Key evidence in this case might be the autopsy.
37:53We have to go examine the body.
37:57On the day that she was found, it was probably the coldest four or five days span.
38:04When we removed the body, there were still ice crystals and ice formed around the nose and the mouth.
38:11And because of the cold weather, they had to wait for the body to thaw.
38:16The ME found crystallization in her lungs.
38:19She had fluid in her lungs that froze.
38:23That indicated that she was still alive when she was stuffed inside that suitcase.
38:29The ME determined she was asphyxiated, unable to breathe, tied up in the suitcase.
38:37That showed she was alive in New York and died in the state of Connecticut.
38:45All those little things were real important because if you don't hit all those elements, we don't have a charge.
38:51The Southern District of New York assigned an assistant United States attorney immediately to this case.
38:57We sit down with whatever evidence we have.
38:59On the day of January 28th, 2019, Valerie left her job.
39:04She spoke with her mother.
39:06She went to bed.
39:08About 10.30 on the 28th of January,
39:11Hevriar was caught on surveillance camera, leaving the hallway of his apartment.
39:18He went to rent a car approximately five minutes away.
39:25Hevriar then puts the GPS coordinates of New Rochelle into his phone.
39:30And then he drove to New Rochelle and turned his phone off.
39:34He went up there to try to rob her.
39:37He's like a predator to see somebody that's vulnerable.
39:41She had approximately $5,300 in the bank.
39:47During that time, a violent struggle ensued.
39:52Valerie fought back.
39:55Hevriar beat her, which rendered her unconscious.
40:01At that point, Hevriar used her fingerprint to access her iPad.
40:06He said, I'd tape her mouth to stop her from screaming and yelling out.
40:11He put her in a suitcase and he leaves the apartment, kidnapping her.
40:17And then he buried the suitcase in Connecticut.
40:23She was alive in New York when he put the duct tape around her mouth,
40:29then stuffed her in a suitcase.
40:32And then he proceeded over a five-day period to do numerous ATM withdrawals and basically cleaned out her bank
40:40account.
40:41Larceny and greed was certainly a primary motive.
40:44His digital footprint does place him in all parts of this crime.
40:49From the initial stages to the rental of the car, to where Valerie was eventually found in Connecticut.
41:02We know that Hevriar De Silva Rojas committed this crime.
41:08This case does not go to trial.
41:10There is a plea agreement.
41:12He would plead guilty to kidnapping with the result of murder and be sentenced to 360 months, 30 years in
41:21prison.
41:26She was 24 years old, just starting her life.
41:30I took it very personal.
41:33We barely slept.
41:35And we were going to solve it no matter what.
41:39I knew she was someone's loved one and we needed to bring justice for her family.
41:49There's moments where I just feel like my entire soul is pouring out and I can't stop.
41:56I always say she's my star.
41:59My shooting star.
42:01I want people to remember that she was a resilient soul.
42:06And no matter how tough her life was, at one point she pushed through.
42:14She pushed through.
42:35I, we've seen the energy, she's a very strong body of pain, she's a very strong body of pain.
42:35And I thought, I'm going to take it on the floor of my body.
42:35My choice is a big one.
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