Woman found dead in central Las Vegas home
A woman was found dead Friday morning in the bedroom of a Las Vegas home, and two of the occupants told police they did not know her.
“There appears to be quite a struggle in that room,” Metropolitan Police Department Lt. Dan McGrath said.
He said a resident arrived at a house at 313 Lilac Lane, near Rancho Drive and Bonanza Road, early Friday morning and found a partially clothed woman dead in a bedroom. Police responded at 12:24 a.m.
McGrath said the woman appeared to have some head trauma, but investigators are waiting for an autopsy.
Two men who live in the home cooperated with police at the scene. They said they did not know the dead woman.
Police later identified 25-year-old Jaime Santana as a suspect in the killing. They said he may be driving a blue 2015 two-door Scion with Nevada license plate No. 37A563.
Neither police nor the Clark County coroner’s office have identified the homicide victim, but the same car appeared in a Facebook post Friday morning with the plea “HELP US FIND Wendy Rodriguez.” By Friday night, a GoFundMe page had raised more than $2,300 for Wendy Rodriguez’s funeral.
Josh Diaz, who lives in a house across the street from where the body was found, said he had noticed the blue Scion on Thursday night in the driveway of the house where the woman’s body was found. He said he had seen the car outside the house once before.
Tom Kordus, who lives in the cul-de-sac on Lilac Lane, said he never ran into any problems with those who live in the house.
“Good neighbors, quiet, mind their own business,” he said. “They appear to be hard-working.”
Kordus said Metro officers asked him Friday morning whether he knew anything about a green car. He told officers he did not.
His wife, Joan, said people in the neighborhood are generally quiet and friendly. She also said those who live in the home have been good neighbors.
“It’s a good little cul-de-sac,” she said.
Arthur Syracuse lives two doors down from where the body was found.
He said police searched the possibly vacant house that sits between his and the one being investigated early Friday morning.
The cause of the woman’s death will be determined by the Clark County coroner’s office.
This was the 104th homicide in Metro’s jurisdiction this year. Anyone with information about the case may contact the homicide section at 702-828-3521 or homicide@lvmpd.com. To remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at 702-385-5555 or www.crimestoppersofnv.com.
Contact Max Michor at mmichor@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0381. Find @MaxMichor on Twitter. Find @BlakeApgarLV on Twitter.
