Nearly 20 years later, ex-boyfriend charged with death of woman whose body was found floating inside suitcase on Biscayne River Canal
Miami-Dade County, FL (WFOR) Almost 20 years after the body of a woman was found floating inside a suitcase in the Biscayne River Canal, the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office announced Tuesday they have charged her ex-boyfriend with her murder.
Authorities said they have charged 45-year-old Berkley Calvin Curtis Jr. with 2nd-degree murder in the death of 26-year-old Rebeca Pena.
Rafael Pena, Rebecca’s father, describes getting the call with the news. His words have been translated from Spanish to English.
Abusive Ex-Boyfriend Arrested 19 Years After Girl s Body Was Dumped in Miami Canal Rebeca Pena Miami-Dade Police Department
The cold-blooded slaying of Rebeca Pena finally gets a closure two decades later. After a deeper probe was launched earlier this year, it came into the CBS Miami’s understanding that Berkley Calvin Curtis Jr., Pena’s abusive ex, had a role to play, despite his alibi convincing them otherwise, years ago.
Curtis is lodged at Broward County Jail on Wednesday but is expected to be moved to a prison in Miami-Dade. Curtis was arrested after Miami police investigated the home she once shared with Curtis and found weights on the patio that were later identified as those in the suitcase.
Boyfriend of ‘Ali’ movie extra found stuffed in suitcase arrested over her murder 19 years later
Updated: 17 Dec 2020, 12:27
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THE boyfriend of an ‘Ali’ movie extra found stuffed in a suitcase and dumped in a canal has been charged with her murder two decades later.
The remains of Rebeca Pena, 26, were discovered by boaters inside the floating suitcase, tied with two 25-pound weight lifting plates to keep her body submerged in a north Miami-Dade canal.
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Ms Pena had been stalked by Curtis, say MPD detectivesCredit: miami.cbslocal.com/
Also inside the suitcase was a magazine addressed to the Pena family with a Silver Springs, Maryland address.
‘Suitcase killer’ is arrested almost 20 years after his ex-girlfriend s body was found floating in a Miami canal – despite his alibi being destroyed by his baby mother in 2014
Berkley Calvin Curtis Jr. was arrested on Monday and charged with second degree murder in the death of 26-year-old Rebeca Pena
Pena s body was discovered by boaters in the Biscayne River Canal on April 16, 2001
There was 25lb weight lifting plates inside the suitcase that were intended to keep it weighted down
But the case went cold, even after his other ex testified in 2014 that he left the house for several hours on the night Pena was killed