A love triangle murder mystery has been solved by a macabre Google Street View picture allegedly showing a body bag being loaded into a car.
The remarkable photo, still accessible on Google Maps, depicts an individual bending over a white bag in the trunk of a red car in the village of Calle Norte in Tajueco, Spain.
Law enforcement authorities assert that the photograph, inadvertently captured by a passing Google Street View car, has played a vital role in solving the murder case of a man who had gone missing and whose dismembered body has since been discovered.
The Cuban national, aged 33, was reported missing by his brother in November 2023 and police had been trying to locate the man for months.
According to local reports, some of his dismembered remains, such as his torso, were located in the cemetery in the town of Andaluz last week. Allegedly, some of his limbs are still unaccounted for.
The man had reportedly travelled to the Soria province to search for his wife, who was already living in the area.
When he arrived, he allegedly discovered that his Cuban wife was having an affair with her 40-year-old neighbour from Soria, who is locally known as Wolf of Tajueco and is understood to be running a bar in nearby Bayubas de Arriba.
Investigators said that the crime originated from the love triangle, with the woman and her affair partner planning the murder, according to Cibercuba.
The photo shows a man loading what appears to be a body bag into the trunk of a red car, local media reports
The victim’s brother said the last messages he received from him mentioned the man meeting a woman and a plan to get rid of his phone.
The messages allegedly sounded suspicious and when he didn’t hear from his brother again, the man reported him missing.
Police investigated the disappearance and searched various properties in Soria, including excavations near the home of one of the suspects.
But the crucial lead in the case was provided by the Google Street View picture showing a man loading a big bag appearing to be a body into the trunk, which led investigators to focus on the wife’s new partner.
It is unclear who the individual loading the trunk in the picture is.
Wiretaps revealed that both the woman and the barman were involved in the crime, but it has not been reported how this led investigators to the cemetery where the Cuban man’s remains were found.
They were arrested on November 12 and have remained in provisional custody since.
After the discovery of the men’s dismembered body, forensic experts investigated the burial site on the cemetery before transferring his remains to the Soria Institute of Legal Medicine for analysis.
After the discovery of the men’s dismembered body, forensic experts investigated the burial site on the cemetery (pictured) before transferring his remains to the Soria Institute of Legal Medicine for analysis
The identification of the body found in the cemetery was complicated by the advanced decomposition of the remains, but police still assume they belong to the missing Cuban man
The identification of the body was complicated by the advanced decomposition of the remains, but police still assume they belong to the missing Cuban man.
The cemetery in Andaluz has been sealed for days following the gruesome discovery.
Residents in Tajueco, Andaluz and other nearby towns expressed shock over the discovery of the body, with one person telling local media: ‘Nobody thought something like this could happen here. It’s such a quiet town.’
A local judge has ordered the details of the case to remain secret as the investigation is ongoing, with police only announcing last week’s discovery of the man’s body on Tuesday.
Just 50 people live in the small town in the province of Soria.
This is a breaking news story. More to follow.
