Cause Of Death Revealed In Greenwich Suitcase Murder: Report

GREENWICH, CT — Valerie Reyes, the murdered 24-year-old New Rochelle woman found in a suitcase in Greenwich in February, died of "homicidal asphyxia," or a lack of oxygen, according to the Connecticut Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, reports The Hour.

Her deceased body was found bound and gagged in a suitcase on the side of Glenville Road on Feb. 5, and a suspect in her killing was arrested a week later. Javier Enrique Da Silva Rojas (known as Javier Da Silva) was charged federally with one count of kidnapping resulting in death, which carries a potential sentence of death or life in prison.

Patch reached out to the medical examiner's office for comment but did not immediately receive a reply. When her body was found her head showed signs of trauma, which Da Silva claimed occurred when Reyes fell and hit her head.

Reyes and Da Silva had dated, according to authorities, but they were not a couple at the time of her death. She had been reported missing by her family about a week before her body was found. Click here to read the full Feb. 12 arrest release from the United States Attorney's Office from the Southern District of New York.

Attorneys for Da Silva and prosecutors have held discussions of a possible plea agreement, but whether a deal has been reached has not been announced.

Click here to read the full story on The Hour website.