NYPD: Familial DNA Search Identified Joseph Martinez As Suspect In Cold Case Murder Of Bronx Teen Minerliz Soriano
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) — More information is being released about the suspect arrested this week in the cold case murder of a teenage girl in the Bronx.
The brutal murder of Minerliz Soriano had gone unsolved for more than two decades. Police say in that time, the suspect has been living in Westchester, was very involved in the community and was even working with children.
Minerliz Soriano (Photo: CBS2)
Minerliz Soriano was 13 years old in 1999 when her body was found wrapped in a trash bag inside a dumpster behind a Co-Op City video store. Police say she was sexually abused and strangled.
After 22 years, Joseph Martinez was arrested Monday and charged for the murder.
READ MORE: NYPD Arrests Joseph Martinez Of New Rochelle In 1999 Killing Of Bronx 13-Year-Old Minerliz Soriano
Investigators say the 49-year-old New Rochelle resident goes by the name “Jupiter Joe” and has a YouTube page which shows him teaching children astronomy on the street.
Sources tell CBS2 at the time of the murder, the suspect was living in the same Bronx building as the teenage victim and was even questioned by investigators after her death but was not considered a suspect at the time.
The NYPD tracked him down after all these years using familial DNA and say this is the first time the technique has been used in New York City to solve a case.
“When familial DNA search was introduced, familial DNA searching is a deliberate search using specialized software for a relative. So we searched this particular DNA profile, and as a result, we had a forensic familial DNA search hit to the father of the defendant,” said Emanuel Katranakis, commanding officer of the NYPD Forensic Investigative Unit.
Martinez was arraigned Tuesday on two counts of second-degree murder, both felony and intentional.
The victim’s family told CBS2’s Ali Bauman on Monday night they were so grateful to finally see an arrest, but still frustrated it took this long.
from CBS New York https://ift.tt/2Izr88c