DELRAY BEACH, Fla. – A 78-year-old man has been arrested in the fatal shooting of his wife, whose remains were found inside three suitcases last week that were floating in the Intracoastal Waterway in Delray Beach, authorities announced Thursday.
William Lowe, of Delray Beach, was taken into custody Wednesday afternoon, according to News 6 partner Local 10 News.
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He faces charges of first-degree murder and abuse of a human corpse.
Last week, authorities released renderings of what the then-unidentified victim might look like. They identified her Thursday as Aydil Barbosa Fontes, who had been married to Lowe for about 15 years.
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Detectives also released images of the suitcases her body was found inside of.
The suitcases were found floating in the Intracoastal Waterway on July 21 in two different locations not far apart.
Investigators believe the victim’s body was dropped into the water sometime between July 17 and July 20.
According to Lowe’s probable cause affidavit, a man notified police on July 21 that he had spotted a suitcase in the water that had a human foot protruding through the zipper.
Police later confirmed that the suitcase contained two human legs.
According to the police report, authorities received a second call about an hour later about a suitcase that had been found on the rocks on the west side of the Intracoastal Waterway. That suitcase contained what appeared to be a human torso that was missing the head and hands.
Police said a third suitcase was found a short time later on the east side of the Intracoastal, which contained a female pelvis.
Police said the suitcases contained multiple landscaping rocks and loose barnacles.
According to the police report, a U.S. Coast Guard crew spotted a “tote-type bag” the following day that was tied shut around the handles with twine and had a men’s belt wrapped around it.
Police said the bag contained the victim’s head. A gunshot wound was visible behind the victim’s ear, with an exit wound behind the other ear, the report stated.
According to the report, two witnesses told detectives on July 23 that Lowe had come to the area of Bucida Road, where the third suitcase was located, for several days prior to the date the suitcase was found, staring out at the water.
The witnesses said they asked Lowe what he was looking at, and that he appeared nervous and told them he was “waiting for the big boat to come into the harbor.”
WATCH: Delray Beach police provide latest information on homicide investigation.
The witnesses said they informed him that large boats don’t come into the harbor because it is too shallow, at which point he allegedly walked to his car and left the area.
Police said they also spoke with several workers in the area who saw Lowe looking at the suitcase in the water on July 21 and saying, “S***,” before leaving the area in his car.
Detectives say they later discovered that Lowe and Barbosa Fontes lived together at an apartment unit in Delray Beach.
According to the police report, detectives questioned Lowe and he told them he was married to Barbosa Fontes, but that she had left to Brazil.
After showing him photos of the suitcases, he claimed to have never seen them and said he didn’t know why his wife’s name would be on an airport sticker on one of the suitcases, the report stated.
According to the report, a search warrant was obtained for Lowe’s home on Monday, where detectives found blood splattered throughout the living room, dining room, hallway, both bathrooms and the master bedroom.
Police said “drag marks” were also seen in some areas, along with numerous cleaning supplies.
As detectives were searching the home, they said they found Lowe climbing through the back window of his apartment. When they asked him why he was sneaking in, he allegedly told them he just needed to get the keys for his storage unit.
According to the report, a chainsaw with blood on it was found Wednesday in Lowe’s storage unit. There also appeared to be bone matter, flesh and human hair in the housing of the saw, authorities said.
A cooler with blood stains on it was also found in the storage unit, according to the report.
Lowe was detained that afternoon and was booked into the Palm Beach County Jail at 7:03 p.m. He is being held without bond.
A motive for the killing remains unclear.
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