A man who returned to the US a week after being deported for a second time has been charged with murdering his ex-girlfriend.
The crimes of Nestor Rocha-Aguayo, 24, were discovered on Saturday when the body of his former partner, Talia Benward, 31, was discovered under a sage bush in Tooele County, near Salt Lake City, police records revealed.
Benward’s body is reported to have shown evidence of significant trauma to her face and neck, Need To Know reports.
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Rocha-Aguayo of West Valley City, Mexico, had been deported on 24 December after being arrested for drugs related charges on November 25, but he returned a week later, messages to his former partner revealed.
“He re-entered the US a third time without admission by an immigration official,” an ICE spokesperson said.
Benward borrowed a friend’s vehicle on 1 January to pick Rocha-Aguayo up from a Maverik gas station in West Jordan.
The alarm was raised when she failed to return the car and did not show up to work for two days.
Her body was found on Saturday (4 January).
Surveillance footage from the station showed Rocha-Aguayo get into the car before the pair seemingly began to argue and point at each other.
Phone data showed that the former couple travelled to a remote area of Tooele County for 28 minutes – after which, Benward’s phone stopped emitting data around Interstate 80 while her ex-boyfriend’s phone was recorded travelling to Salt Lake City.
Benward’s remains were discovered near a burn pit, which contained a mat matching the description of those in the car and blood-stained rocks.
Her former partner has now been charged with aggravated murder, abuse or desecration of a dead human being, and aggravated robbery.
Sergeant Amy Race of the Unified Police Department of Utah, who discovered the body, said: “The Unified Police Department would like to extend our deepest and most heartfelt condolences to the family and friends of Talia Benward.
“We understand that no words can truly capture the pain and sorrow you are experiencing during this tragic time, and our thoughts are with you.
“This case has profoundly impacted our community, and our hearts go out to everyone who knew and loved Talia.”
According to immigration officials, Rocha-Aguayo first illegally entered the US near the Californian border in 2016.
He became a person of interest after being arrested and convicted of ‘local charges’ in Salt Lake City last January.
Rocha-Aguayo was deported for the first time on April 30 before returning at an unknown date.
Further details about the killing are expected to be released after an autopsy of Benward’s remains.
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