ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – UPDATE: The man in this story was later cleared of all charges related to the stabbing death. News 6 has removed his name from this article.
An Orange County man faced a judge Wednesday after detectives say he stabbed a woman to death inside a vehicle, according to a newly released arrest warrant affidavit.
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Deputies said they initially responded to the area of Clarcona Ocoee Road and Rose Avenue around 12:17 p.m. on May 10, 2023, after getting a call from the victim’s boyfriend.
Upon arrival, detectives said they found Maria De Los Angeles Paulino, 52, dead on the floor of a car with “obvious signs of trauma.”
The victim’s boyfriend told detectives that Paulino didn’t live with him, and he last talked with her the night before.
Deputies said when Paulino was not answering text messages or phone calls, the victim’s boyfriend became suspicious and used an iPhone tracking app to track her location that happened to be near the crime scene.
While on scene, a bystander approached detectives and informed them that they had found a knife covered in blood and wrapped in an unknown cloth, less than a quarter mile from the scene, detectives said. The following day, investigators said an autopsy was conducted and showed Paulino was stabbed 16 times. A comprehensive review of video surveillance and license plate readers showed Paulino leaving her apartment complex on May 10 at approximately 3:18 a.m.
On Sept. 8, 2023, law enforcement officials obtained and analyzed data from Paulino’s iPhone.
According to an affidavit for an arrest warrant, the information showed on the night of the crime, Paulino had multiple short conversations with a person through the iPhone application, WhatsApp. Detectives said the number was labeled in the victim’s phone as “Abaca Rd Y Rose Av” which appears to be an intersection approximately one block from the crime scene, the report said.
Deputies said they determined the phone number to be associated with the suspect. Detectives said the suspect was cited and provided a phone number to Florida Fish and Wildlife officers 27 days prior to the homicide.
According to the affidavit, evidence obtained from the victim’s phone and a historical cell site search warrant obtained confirmed that the suspect’s phone was in and around the crime scene on the date and timeframe of the incident, records show.
On Oct. 8, 2023, detectives obtained a search warrant and discovered the suspect had relocated to Lubbock, Texas, to live with his sister.
During the investigation, authorities said they were able to obtain DNA evidence from a used ice tea can that linked the suspect to a DNA sample found on the knife at the crime scene.
In court on Wednesday, a judge set a pre-trial detention hearing for Feb. 26 and ordered the suspect to be held on no bond.
the suspect faces charges of first-degree murder with a weapon.
Details on a motive have not been released.
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