SANFORD, Fla. – Seminole County Sheriff Dennis Lemma and federal law enforcement officials held a news conference on Monday detailing how the agencies have worked together to investigate the deadly carjacking that took place earlier this month near Winter Springs.
Lemma and Roger Handberg, United States Attorney for the Middle District of Florida, discussed the state and federal charges the suspects are facing.
“I feel what we witnessed out there with that carjacking, what we witnessed with the murderer are probably symptoms of a larger problem that’s going on that extend well beyond the scope of the 18th Judicial Circuit and the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office,” Lemma said. “We have made the determination to move this case of federally.”
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Roger Handberg, United States Attorney for the Middle District of Florida, described the deadly carjacking as a targeted act, and said the crime has led to a targeted local, state, and federal law enforcement investigation.
“We are not limiting our investigation to the carjacking into the murder. Our investigation has been and will continue to be thorough, methodical, comprehensive, meticulous and unrelenting,” Handberg said while standing next to officials from the FBI, DEA, Homeland Security and the United States Postal Inspection Service.
The brazen armed carjacking, which happened in broad daylight on April 11, was captured on video by a motorist at the intersection of East Lake Drive and Tuskawilla Road.
The Seminole County Sheriff’s Office said 31-year-old Katherine Altagracia Guerrero De Aguasvivas, of Homestead, was stopped at a traffic light in her Dodge Durango when a masked man carrying a 10mm automatic handgun got out of a green Acura and entered her SUV, apparently forcing her to drive off at gunpoint.
A body believed to be Aguasvivas was found less than two hours later in Osceola County, Lemma said, who added that the body has not been positively identified.
Two persons of interest have been arrested in connection with the carjacking and face federal charges.
Kevin Ocasio Justiniano, 28, who goes by the street name “Kevo,” was arrested last week. Previously, Jordanish Torres-Garcia was arrested and said he was paid to “deliver the victim to someone else,” according to a federal affidavit obtained by News 6.
At this time, Ocasio Justiniano is being held without bond on federal drug and gun charges unrelated to the carjacking. He was arrested in Puerto Rico and is expected to be extradited to Central Florida to face charges in the Middle District of Florida.
Torres-Garcia faces federal charges for carjacking resulting in death and is being held without bond. Handberg said if convicted, Torres-Garcia faces a maximum penalty of life in prison or death.
Giovany Crespo Hernandez, who officials believe is the last person to speak with Aguasvivas, is being held without bond on state drug charges. He was arrested on April 22 on fentanyl possession charges days after Lemma announced in a news conference that authorities were searching for him.
In addition, Monicsabel Romero-Soto, who officials said is Crespo Hernandez’s girlfriend, faces federal charges related to accepting delivery of three kilos of cocaine through the U.S. Postal Service after being arrested in Osceola County.
“If we find evidence of a federal violation in the course of our investigation, we’re going to pursue it, such as what we’re doing in the federal case that has been brought against Romero-Soto,” Handberg said.
The case has also taken several twists and turns, including the arrest of an Orange County sheriff’s deputy, the slaying of a tow truck driver in Taft and the fact that Aguasvivas’ family is no longer cooperating with the investigation.
“One reason why we are taking this approach is because of what we have seen in so many other federal prosecutions, which is that violence and drug trafficking go hand in hand,” Handberg said. “The three drug cases that have been charged as part of this investigation in federal and state court, firearms were present in two of them, including a machine gun. Simply put, drug trafficking is dangerous”