Vanessa Avilés Méndez, a former Bolivian model wanted by her country's justice system after getting involved in an alleged corruption case with the state oil company Yacimientos Petrolíferos Fiscales Bolivianos (YPFB), was murdered by her boyfriend on August 30.
According to El Nuevo Herald, Miami authorities are carrying out an investigation to uncover how Méndez , 31, lost her life. However, her attacker has been identified in Bolivia as Alexander Cronk, who presumably committed suicide after murdering his girlfriend.
Around 12:30 a.m. EDT on August 30, a woman, whose name has not been revealed, called 911 to express her concern about her friend, who may have been in Apartment 3 of 229 Northeast 32nd Street, in Wynwood. Afterwards, a neighbor called the same number to report the presence of an armed man in that apartment.
When police units arrived at the location, the man entrenched himself in the apartment until 6:30 a.m. EST, when SWAT teams entered the apartment and found Méndez murdered and Cronk dead by suicide.
El Nuevo Herald reported that Méndez had a police record for a minor charge of prostitution, which she was arrested for in the United States.
The former Bolivian model was declared a fugitive from justice in Bolivia in 2012, after a lawsuit against her and her then-boyfriend, Gerson Rojas, the former manager of an YPFB plant in the Río Grande region, was issued.
According to Eju.TV, prosecutors and attorneys in Bolivia obtained an arrest warrant against the former model for falsifying a professional degree to be able to work in the state-owned company, netting her a salary surpassing $10,000 Bolivianos, or $1,447 in U.S. currency, at the behest of Rojas.
- Contribute to this Story:
- Send us a tip
- Send us a photo or video
- Suggest a correction
