Inset: Jose L. Proano (Orange County Sheriff’s Office). Background: The area in Florida where Proano allegedly killed his stepfather (Google Maps).
A 44-year-old Florida man is accused of killing and dismembering his 71-year-old stepfather before stuffing the victim’s remains into three suitcases and abandoning them along a roadside, authorities said.
Jose L. Proano was arrested Wednesday and charged with first-degree murder in the death of Jorge Vazquez-Escutia, the Orange County Sheriff’s Office announced.
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The investigation began Tuesday after Vazquez-Escutia’s relatives reported him missing. Family members told deputies they found his wallet, cellphone and keys inside his Orlando home, along with what appeared to be blood on a fence in the backyard, police said. Testing later confirmed the blood belonged to Vazquez-Escutia, prompting detectives to begin investigating the disappearance as a homicide.
Investigators also reportedly received information from a woman who reported that Proano had killed his stepfather.
During an interview with detectives, Proano said he had a strained relationship with Vazquez-Escutia and blamed him for limiting his access to his mother, who suffers from dementia.
“He has had ongoing problems with Jorge Vazquez-Escutia and thoughts that Jorge Vazquez-Escutia [was] abandoning his mother, leaving her alone in the residence even though she had dementia, and preventing him from accessing his mother,” investigators wrote in the affidavit. “He placed numerous calls for service to check on his family members, nearing the level of obsession.”
Surveillance footage from the victim’s home allegedly showed a man matching Proano’s description climbing over the backyard wall Sunday and spending several hours behind the home. The footage later showed the man loading what investigators believed were human remains into multiple suitcases before wheeling them away from the property.
Investigators said cellphone records also placed Proano’s phone at the residence during the same period captured on the surveillance footage.
During questioning, Proano initially denied being at the home before later acknowledging he had been watching the residence while continuing to deny any involvement in the killing, investigators said.
A subsequent search along White Road led detectives to three abandoned suitcases. According to investigators, one contained Vazquez-Escutia’s severed head while the other two contained additional human remains wrapped in tarps. The recovered luggage was reportedly identified through tags bearing Proano’s mother’s name.
Investigators also interviewed witnesses who said Proano admitted to killing his stepfather in the aftermath.
“Friends of Jose Proano reached out to family and detailed that Jose Proano admitted to killing his father/taking care of his father, beating up his father, with the reasoning behind [redacted],” the affidavit states. “A second witness detailed he was called by Jose Proano requesting help in regard to this incident.”
The sheriff’s office said detectives ultimately uncovered evidence showing Proano killed and dismembered Vazquez-Escutia before attempting to conceal the crime by disposing of the body in suitcases.
“There are no outstanding suspects, and there is no threat to the community,” the agency said in a statement. “Our thoughts are with Mr. Vazquez-Escutia’s loved ones as they navigate this unimaginable loss.”
Proano is being held without bond at the Orange County Jail. It was not immediately clear when he was scheduled to make his first court appearance.
The post ‘Nearing the level of obsession’: Man dismembered stepdad, stuffed remains in suitcases he then wheeled away from victim’s home, police say first appeared on Law & Crime.
