Savanah Soto and Matthew Guerra were found shot dead in their vehicle December 26.Photo:Leon Valley Police Department
Leon Valley Police Department
One week after afather and son were arrestedin connection to thedouble-homicideof apregnant teen and her boyfriend, the San Antonio Police Departmentannounceda third arrest of a woman believed to be the suspected shooter’s stepmother.
Earlier this month, Christopher Ray Preciado, 19, waschargedwithcapital murderin connection to the deaths ofSavanah Soto, 18, and her boyfriend Matthew Guerra, 22. He is also charged in separate cases with abuse of a corpse and with altering/destroying/concealing a human corpse, perhis online court records.
His father, Ramón Preciado, 53, who was brought out in a perp walk just before his son, was charged with abuse of a corpse, after allegedly helping his son discard the vehicle with the couple’s dead bodies inside. He is also charged with altering/destroying/concealing a human corpse, perhis online court records.
Ramón Preciado (L), Christopher Preciado (C) and Myrta Romanos (R) are charged in connection to the capital murders of Savanah Soto and Matthew Guerra.San Antonio Police Department
San Antonio Police Department
Now, Myrta Romanos, 47, who lived with the father and son, has been arrested and charged with three felonies: Abuse of a corpse, tampering of evidence, and altering/destroying/or concealing a human corpse, policeannouncedat a press conference following her own perp walk Wednesday afternoon.
A tossed towel seen in video surveillance footage had suggested a third person’s involvement in the capital murder case, San Antonio Police Department Lt. Michelle Ramos said at the press conference, noting that Romanos is “maybe a stepmother,” to Christopher.
Wearing a baggy black T-shirt and red pajama pants, Romanos kept her head down as police officers escorted her through a gag of journalists – asking questions in English and Spanish, including: “Are you sorry?” – and into a parking deck connected to the precinct. She was silent as she ducked into the back of a SUV and was driven away from the police station.
Myrta Romanos is escorted out of the police precinct Wednesday afternoon, charged with three felonies connected to the capital murders of a young pregnant couple.San Antonio Police Department
Investigators located the couple’s missing silver Kia Optima at an apartment building parking lot on Danny Kaye Drive in San Antonio the day after Christmas, according to police.
Savanah Soto in a photograph taken shortly before her murder.Leon Valley Police Department
Police found Soto and Guerra inside – both shot to death, San Antonio Police Chief William McManus saidearlier in the investigation. Evidence suggested that the shooter had pressed the gun to Guerra’s head, then pulled the trigger, according to the chief.
Police have said the couple’s execution-style deaths seem to be linked to a botched drug deal, although they have provided few details of the alleged transaction. Romanos told police that the gun used in the couple’s shooting belonged to her, the lieutenant alleged Wednesday.
Myrta Romanos.San Antonio Police Department
Last week, Washington Moscoso of the San Antonio Police Department said at apress conferencethat the father and son were “the only suspects we were looking for.”
Noting extensive social media speculation on the high-profile murders, the lieutenant amended Wednesday that the department had long-believed Romanos to be involved in the case but could not bring her in at the time of the father’s and son’s Jan. 3 arrests because they did not yet have enough evidence of her connection to make the charges stick.
“At this time, we’re confident that there’s no more suspects,” the lieutenant said. “At this time, we’re confident that these were the three individuals that were involved in this case.”
None of the three suspects have pleaded to the charges, per their online court records. A series of pre-hearings have been slated for each.
Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up forPEOPLE’s free True Crime newsletterfor breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.
Christopher Preciado is scheduled to next be in court Feb. 5 for the charge of capital murder involving multiple people. Both father and son will be in court the following day on other charges.
Romanos, perher online records, has three separate pre-hearings slated, beginning Jan. 30.
source: people.com
