The Hartford man accused of brutally stabbing his ex-girlfriend to death and attempting to violate her dead body admitted to smoking crack cocaine and drinking alcohol the night of the murder, according to documents presented in court on Thursday.
According to the paperwork, murder victim Luz Nieves, 45, accused Alex Baez-Franqui, 40, of being unfaithful to her Saturday night and asked him to leave the apartment they shared on Hanmer Street.
Baez-Franqui told investigators he had been drinking with Nieves and smoked crack cocaine prior to the attack, according to the warrant for his arrest.
He told police Nieves began “nagging” him, so he pulled out a kitchen knife, "shook it out of frustration" and placed it on the table. He then went into the bathroom to smoke more crack cocaine while Nieves continued to nag him through the closed door, the arrest warrant says.
Baez-Franqui told investigators he “lost control” and retrieved the knife, holding Nieves down on the living room futon and stabbing her repeatedly. Court documents say Baez-Franqui then cleaned up the crime scene and smoked more crack cocaine before attempting to violate her dead body.
He told police he was "sorry" and blamed “pent up anger” from when he was sexually assaulted at the age of 14, according to the warrant for his arrest. Baez-Franqui said he knew what he did was wrong.
Nieves, a Travelers Insurance employee whom colleagues described as an “outstanding employee,” was reported missing after she failed to show up for work two days in a row, according to police.
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Police searched the apartment and found her body, bloody and half-naked, with “multiple stab wounds to her torso and neck,” according to Hartford police spokesman Deputy Chief Brian Foley.
Family members of Nieves sobbed in court on Thursday and described her as a loving mother and grandmother. They said the couple had never reported having problems in the past.
A public defender representing Baez-Franqui in court on Thursday requested detoxification and mental health treatment for the suspect.
"I can't talk right now. I'm in shock," said Baez-Franqui's aunt, who, still reeling from the shocking details of the case, told NBC Connecticut she was having a "panic attack" and was planning to move because she was "so scared."
A judge raised Baez-Franqui’s bond from $1 million to $2 million. He’s due back in court Nov. 21.
