George Banda, Murder: Luis Campos & Linoshka Torres, TBD
Bodies are missing couple's, families told One man arrested; another suspect remains at large 12:00 AM CST on Sunday, February 4, 2007 By TANYA EISERER and HOLLY YAN / The Dallas Morning News The worst fears of the families of Luis Campos and Linoshka Torres were confirmed Saturday night. Detectives notified the families that the two bodies discovered Friday in southeast Dallas County were those of the Dallas couple who went missing in central Oak Cliff on Jan. 6. Reached by phone, both families said they were devastated by the finality of the news. "Right now, my mind is blank," said Ms. Torres' mother, Francia De La Rosa. Guzman Jorge Banda, whom police had been questioning in the case, was arrested and jailed on suspicion of capital murder. A second suspect remains at large, and authorities believe others may have been involved. The unclothed bodies were found Friday morning under a bridge off Dowdy Ferry Road near Interstate 45. Authorities believe that the couple died of blunt force injuries and that they were killed the day they disappeared. The disappearance of Ms. Torres, 18, and Mr. Campos, 20, had mystified police and their families for nearly a month. The pair, expecting their first child in April, did not have criminal records, and nothing made them obvious targets of crime. "I really think thought they were somebody different or that they thought they had done something," said Sgt. Gary Kirkpatrick, commander of the special investigations unit. About 4:30 p.m. Jan. 6, the couple arrived at the central Oak Cliff house of Francisco Iniguez, a mechanic who had been working on Mr. Campos' Ford Mustang. The couple waited in the driveway of the home in the 3300 block of Edgefield Avenue for Mr. Iniguez to come home. The mechanic's son, Francisco Iniguez Jr., has told police he looked out the window and saw the couple sitting in their red Ford Explorer. Moments later, he said, he saw a light-colored car with tinted windows parked behind the Explorer. It then drove away. It's unclear whether the couple got into the car, but the couple left their cellphones in their vehicle and the keys in the ignition. It was the last reported sighting of the couple. The mechanic and his son have not responded to requests for comment. Police said they want to talk to them again. "We're not convinced that we have all the answers from them yet," Sgt. Kirkpatrick said. "There's certainly reason to believe that the mechanic's family may have more information that they haven't told us." Mr. Banda, 51, was being held in the Dallas County Jail on Saturday in lieu of $1 million bail. Mr. Banda also is being held for immigration officials, although his immigration status was uncertain. "He was part of it, but I can't tell you exactly what he did," Sgt. Kirkpatrick said. A second suspect, Nicolas Monarrez, 30, is wanted on an arrest warrant accusing him of kidnapping the couple and also is expected to face capital murder charges. Police think he might be in Mexico. "We think he is the ring leader," Sgt. Kirkpatrick said. "He has more culpability than anyone." http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/DN-missing_04met.ART.State.Edition1.296631e.html

Two arrests made in slaying of Dallas couple Sunday February 04, 2007 DALLAS (AP) Two people have been charged with capital murder in the slayings of a Dallas couple whose bodies were found in southeast Dallas after being missing almost a month, Dallas police said Sunday. The bodies of Luis Campos, 20, and Linoshka Torres, 18, who were expecting their first child in April, were found Friday. Jorge Guzman Banda, 51, who was being held in the Dallas County jail on unrelated charges, has now been charged with capital murder in the deaths Campos and Torres, police said. Bond is set at $1 million. Frank Estrella, 20, was arrested Sunday morning in Anaheim, Calif., and was charged with capital murder in the deaths, police said. He's also being held on $1 million bond. A kidnapping arrest warrant for a third suspect, 30-year-old Nicolas Monarrez, has been issued. Dallas police say he's currently at large. Campos and Torres were last seen on Jan. 6 in central Oak Cliff, an area in south Dallas. Their unclothed bodies were found under a bridge near Interstate 45. Authorities believe that they were killed the day they disappeared and that they died of blunt force injuries. The pair did not have criminal records. Information from: The Dallas Morning News, www.dallasnews.com http://keyetv.com/texaswire/TX--CoupleDead_d_n_0tx--/resources_news_html

Posted on Mon, Feb. 05, 2007 Two held in kidnap, murder of couple Star-Telegram staff Frank Estrella was arrested in Anaheim, Calif., in connection with the Dallas slayings of Linoshka Torres and Luis Campos. A Dallas man was in a California jail on Monday, awaiting extradition to Dallas to face capital murder charges in the deaths of a Duncanville couple whose bodies were discovered last week near the Trinity River, police said. Frank Estrella, 20, is one of three men suspected in the kidnapping and murder of Luis Campos, 20, and 18-year-old Linoshka Torres, whose bodies were discovered Friday beneath the Dowdy Ferry Road Bridge in southeast Dallas. The couple, who were expecting their first child in April, had been missing since Jan. 6. Estrella, who was arrested at his mother's home in Anaheim, Calif., was being held there Monday, with bond set at $1 million. Police are asking the public to help find Nicolas Monarrez, 30, who is also suspected in the crimes. A third suspect, Jorge Guzman Banda, 51, was already being held in a Dallas County jail, charged with capital murder and unrelated charges, NBC5 reported. His bond was also set at $1 million. Anyone with information is asked to call 214-671-3661. http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/16627107.htm

Posted on Mon, Feb. 05, 2007 Mistaken identity suspected in killings By BILL MILLER Star-Telegram Staff Writer Police believe a case of mistaken identity may have led to the slayings of a Duncanville couple whose bodies were found late last week below a bridge spanning the Trinity River in southeast Dallas County. Meanwhile, one of three suspects in the case was being held Monday at a Dallas County jail, while a second suspect was in a California jail awaiting extradition to Dallas. A third man remained at large. The men in custody face capital murder charges in the deaths of Luis Campos, 20, and Linoshka Torres, 18, whose unclothed bodies were found under a bridge east of where Interstates 20 and 45 intersect. Authorities say they believe that the pair were killed Jan. 6, the same day they disappeared and that they died of blunt force injuries. The victims, who had no criminal records, were expecting their first baby in April. Senior Cpl. Jamie Kimbrough, police spokeswoman, confirmed that investigators suspect the couple might have been mistaken for others, although she could not confirm reports that the killings were retribution for a suspected theft. Sgt. Gary Kirkpatrick of the Dallas police homicide unit declined to give further details. He noted, however, that the suspects were identified through a painstaking investigation. "It didn’t come easy,” Kirkpatrick said. "We canvassed neighborhoods and got pieces of information that led to others and, eventually, it all came together.” Frank Estrella, 21, who was arrested Sunday at his mother’s home in Anaheim, Calif., was being held there Monday, with bond set at $1 million. Another suspect, Jorge Guzman Banda, 51, was already being held at the Lew Sterrett Justice Center, according to jail records. His bond was also set at $1 million. Banda was also being held on federal immigration charges because he has been identified as an illegal alien, said Deputy Michael Ortiz, spokesman for the Dallas County Sheriff’s Department. Police are asking the public to help find Nicolas Monarrez, 30, who is also suspected in the crimes. Monarrez is a Mexican citizen and could have fled across the border, although Kirkpatrick said police had not confirmed that. Schepps Dairy has put up a $10,000 reward for information leading to his arrest. This article includes material from The Associated Press. http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/16627107.htm

Feb. 10, 2007, 8:15PM Couple may have been killed after wrongly blamed for drug theft DALLAS — Investigators believe a young couple whose bodies were found under a bridge almost a month after their disappearance may have been killed because they were wrongly blamed for a drug theft. Luis Campos, 20, and Linoshka Torres, 18, did not have a criminal record. The two were expecting their first child when they went missing on Jan. 6. They were last seen waiting outside the home of a mechanic who was repairing Campos' car. Investigators now theorize the mechanic, Francisco Iniguez, blamed Campos for the burglary of at least $40,000 in cash and drugs from the home of another man. That man, 30-year-old Nicolas Monarrez, is now suspected in the couple's death. "The only way to keep from dying is to say somebody else did it," said Dallas police Sgt. Gary Kirkpatrick. "The suspect in the theft told them, 'It wasn't me. It was him'." Monarrez remains at large and may have fled to Mexico. Two other men, Jorge Guzman Banda, 51, and Frank Estrella, 20, were charged with capital murder in the deaths of the couple. Bond is set at $1 million for both men, authorities said. Police say the couple was abducted from the driveway of the mechanic's home and taken to the home of a Monarrez' girlfriend, where they were tortured and killed. Campos and Torres died from blunt force trauma and homicidal violence, according to court documents. Their unclothed bodies were found under a bridge near Interstate 45 on Feb. 2. Investigators and relatives of the victims say Iniguez, the mechanic, and his son weren't forthcoming with information. But Iniguez denies the allegation. "I have told the truth. I have not told any lies," he said and declined to comment further. Police say they fear for the safety of witnesses. Monarrez' girlfriend, who owns the home where investigators think the couple was killed, has gone into hiding. Her father and mother also are hiding. http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metrop...an/4543317.html