ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – Orange County Sheriff John Mina provided a timeline on Wednesday of the investigation into Miya Marcano’s disappearance.
Mina held a news conference at the sheriff’s office headquarters following the release of cellphone video taken by the Marcano family.
It shows them confronting Armando Caballero hours after deputies were called for a well-being check on Marcano after she missed a flight to South Florida on Sept. 24.
Investigators believe Caballero is responsible for Marcano’s disappearance and her death.
“We do recognize in that video the family mentions concerns about previous interactions between Miya and Armando Caballero,” Mina said. “However, at the time that video was taken, there was no basis for our deputies to detain or arrest Armando Caballero.”
The interaction between Caballero and the family took place at 3:45 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 25, at Arden Villas apartments, according to the Marcano family. Mina said, at the time of that interaction, Miya Marcano was already dead.
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“Sadly, detaining Caballero at 4:30 a.m. would not have changed the fact the Caballero left her body at Tymber Skan apartments, between 8 and 9 p.m. the night before,” he said. “That’s a full eight hours before that video was taken. And actually, it was before the sheriff’s office was even called.”
According to the sheriff’s timeline, Miya Marcano’s mother called the sheriff’s office for a well-being check at 9:23 p.m. on Sept. 24.
Miya Marcano’s body was found in the woods near Tymber Skan apartments on Saturday, Oct. 2 — more than a week after she went missing.
“This case, the amount of staffing, the man-hours that have been put in and the resources that have been put into this case are some of the most I have ever seen,” Mina said.
The attorney representing Miya Marcano’s family, Daryl Washington, revealed details on Wednesday about how Marcano’s body was found.
“What I can tell you is that this guy had tape around Miya’s wrists, tape around her feet, had tape on her mouth,” Washington said to News 6 partners WPLG. “When you talk about it, you really get frustrated.”
[TIMELINE: Here’s what happened before, after Miya Marcano went missing]
Mina confirmed those details. He added that her shirt had been removed and found in her purse, which was also near her body, but that she was wearing a robe and there was no indication of sexual assault. Investigators still have not said how she died.
“You know because of the decomposition, we’re waiting on toxicology that could take some time,” the sheriff said.
He added that his investigators are still looking for two cellphones and a set of keys in this case and asked anyone who may find them to call the sheriff’s office.
“Our detectives are some of the best in the world and they’ve interviewed every possible person in this case that we know about,” Mina said.
You can see the sheriff’s office’s timeline of the investigation below:
Miya Marcano Investigation Timeline by Thomas Mates on Scribd