Newark, NJ: Newark woman was killed with hammer and dismembered, police say

Published: Wednesday, March 23, 2011, 2:00 PM Updated: Wednesday, March 23, 2011, 2:06 PM
By Richard Khavkine/The Star-Ledger
NEWARK — Police discovered a missing Newark woman's dismembered body in a West Ward residence Tuesday, according to the Essex County Prosecutor's Office.
After receiving a report of a body in an apartment in the city's Ivy Hill neighborhood, police forced their way into the Manor Drive residence of Eusebio Jacome, 51, and found the remains of Miradaliza DeJesus Jiminez, 34, said acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn A. Murray.
Jiminez had been reported missing by family members Friday, Murray said. A preliminary investigation determined blunt force trauma the cause of death, and authorities say she was killed with a hammer.
“We believe that there was a romantic relationship between the two,” prosecutor’s office spokeswoman Katherine Carter said. Jiminez was not living in the apartment with Jacome, she said.
Jacome, a Honduran living in Newark, was arrested and charged in the slaying. He also faces charges of unlawfully using a weapon, as well as desecrating the victim’s body.
Citing the ongoing investigation, Carter declined to provide further details on where in the apartment Jimenez’s body was found and how badly she was dismembered.
Jacome is being held in lieu of $1 million bail at the Essex County jail. He is expected to make his first court appearance next week.