Left To Die In A Suitcase On The Roadside: Killer Sentenced

NEW ROCHELLE, NY — As part of a plea agreement, the man who kidnapped his ex-girlfriend from her New Rochelle apartment before leaving her to die in a suitcase left on the side of the road was sentenced to 30 years in federal prison.

Javier Da Silva, 25, pleaded guilty to kidnapping resulting in death in February of last year in White Plains federal court. Valerie Reyes was reported missing by her family Jan 30, 2019. On Feb 5, 2019, her body was found. Da Silva was arrested in Flushing, Queens in February 2019.

"Javier Da Silva committed a horrific kidnapping that resulted in the death of a young woman," U.S. Attorney Audrey Strauss said in a statement released shortly after the sentence was handed down. "In the days after, he used her ATM card to empty her bank account and then attempted to cover up the evidence of his conduct. Valerie Reyes, the victim of this crime, was in the prime of her life when it was senselessly ended by Da Silva’s abhorrent act."

Da Silva and Reyes, who was 24 years old at the time of her death, were previously in a romantic relationship, which ended in April 2018, according to prosecutors. In the late evening of January 28, 2019, Da Silva rented a car from a garage in Flushing and drove to his ex's home in New Rochelle, arriving in the early morning hours of January 29, 2019.

Before he entered the victim’s home, Da Silva switched his phone to “airplane mode.” Sometime after he entered the victim’s apartment, he and Reyes had a violent altercation, during which she suffered head trauma, bruising around the face and a large hematoma to her forehead.

Da Silva then kidnapped Reyes — covering her mouth with several layers of packing tape and binding her feet and hands with packing tape and twine and putting her in a suitcase. He later disposed of her body, which was still inside the suitcase, in Connecticut.

Over the next several days, Da Silva used a debit card in Reyes' name on various occasions to withdraw approximately $5,350 in cash from her bank account. He also sold an iPad belonging to her in the days following her death.

Da Silva was in the United States illegally. He is a citizen of Venezuela and had overstayed his visa.

"Although justice has been served, we remain saddened by the loss of Valerie and sincerely hope that her family will find peace and a sense of closure to this tragedy," Greenwich Chief of Police James Heavey said in a statement released shortly after Da Silva admitted to the killing.

SEE ALSO:

• Plea Entered In Valerie Reyes Homicide Case
• Cause Of Death Of Valerie Reyes Announced
• Fundraising Site Set Up For Family Of Valerie Reyes
• Greenwich Homicide Victim Found In Suitcase Identified: Police
• Suspect Charged In Reyes Kidnapping Death: UPDATE