Jury Sees Chilling Google Searches Showing Man Looked Up ‘Dead Body in Woods’ Before Killing Pregnant Mistress

A man from Florida has been given a death sentence for the murders of his pregnant girlfriend and the child she was carrying. This happened after a legal process that lasted for seven years. Jose Soto-Escalera, who is 49 years old, was found guilty last month by a jury in St. Lucie County on two charges of first-degree murder for causing the deaths of 23-year-old Tania Wise and her unborn son. The murders took place in August 2018, only a few days before Wise was expected to have her baby.

Testing of DNA after her death proved that Soto-Escalera was the father of the unborn baby. This information comes from the medical examiner’s report that was obtained by the publication People. On October 10, Judge Lawrence Mirman gave him the death penalty for both murders. This decision followed the jury’s official advice, which came after a trial that lasted for a week and looked into the very brutal details of the crime.

Wise’s body was found in a ditch by someone who was walking by. Officials reported that she had very serious injuries to her head and her throat. At first, the investigation looked at a different person as a possible suspect. Then the investigation began to focus on Soto-Escalera. This change was based on information from a woman who used to work with Wise at a club in Stuart, Florida.

The Evidence Collected Shows Clear Planning And A Reason For The Crime

The affidavit states, “Wise told her before she called Escalera she was pregnant with his baby and needed money for an abortion and if he didn’t give it to her she was going to tell his wife,”. The co-worker said that Soto-Escalera first gave Wise $500 but then became angry when she did not actually get the abortion.

While he was being investigated, Soto-Escalera said he did not have a romantic relationship with Wise. He claimed they only knew each other because their children were friends. He gave his phone to the police, who discovered that he had erased his recent call logs and text messages. However, his internet search history was still on the phone, and it revealed a frightening level of planning ahead of the crime. Detective Christopher Newman wrote in the affidavit, “I saw his Google search history on 8/23/2018 at 7:38 hours (EST). He searched ‘dead body in woods’ and ‘wooded area dead body.’ He clicked on four (4) related links for the searches.”

Other evidence included statements from people who saw things and video recordings that showed a truck looking like Soto-Escalera’s was in the area where the crime happened. Soto-Escalera later said that he had sex with Wise one time, but he denied having a continuing affair with her. He also kept saying that he was not guilty of her murder.

The jury thought about both first-degree and second-degree murder charges, which somewhat relate to U.S. Airman murder charges. In the end, they decided there was enough proof to find Soto-Escalera guilty of first-degree murder for both the death of Wise and the death of her unborn son. Wise had planned to name her son Josiah.

During the trial, the people on the jury were shown photographs from the crime scene. These pictures showed the injuries that Wise suffered before her body was discovered. The evidence was described as very violent and disturbing, showing how brutal the attack was. Soto-Escalera continued to say he was innocent for the entire seven years between the crime and when he was found guilty. But the jury finally decided that his actions were done on purpose and were planned in advance.