Date Published: 08/10/2021
ARCHIVED - Semi-nude woman found dead on Lorca street
ARCHIVED ARTICLE A horrified street cleaner found the corpse in Lorca’s Old Town, Murcia
Police and emergency services were called to Calle Zorrilla in
Lorca at around 4am on Thursday October 7, after a street cleaner found a lifeless and semi-nude woman laying on the ground.
The emergency services initially tried to resuscitate the woman but there was nothing that could be done. The victim, who had several signs of violence, especially around her neck, was not carrying any documentation at the time and police officers and witnesses first estimated that she was around 70 years old due to her aged appearance.
However, she was later identified as a 51-year-old Spanish woman from Lorca and her body was taken to the Legal Medicine Institute for a post-mortem.
Further details about the crime have been revealed following the arrest of a man thought to be her sentimental partner. The victim, Manuela, was a mother and grandmother who, just three days prior to her death, had assured a friend that her partner “would not lay a finger on her”, after she was questioned about a black eye.
Sources indicate that her death was caused by strangulation and the investigators are looking into several hypotheses, including the possibility that the killer badly injured the woman in a house and she managed to escape or that her body was dumped on the street after the fact. Although the post-mortem has not yet confirmed or denied sexual violence, the woman’s clothes were ripped and her underwear was clearly visible.
As for the detainee, he insists that the victim was not his girlfriend and that they only had “occasional contact”, but neighbours report that the pair had frequent and violent fights, with one witness even stating that glass bottles and shoes had been thrown at the windows during one of their arguments.
If Manuela’s killer is confirmed to be her sentimental partner, this will be the first case of gender violence in the Region of Murcia this year.
Image: Policía