Two women wanted in connection with the death of a Seattle woman who police say was murdered after she went missing in Deep Ellum in October have been arrested in Florida, court records show.
Nina Tamar Marano, 49, was taken into custody last week in Miami-Dade County and remained in jail Tuesday after waiving an extradition hearing, records show. Lisa Dykes, 57, was arrested in Orange County, Florida, on Saturday.
Authorities in Texas said they were still searching for a third suspect, Charles Beltran, 31.
The family of Marisela Botello Valadez said the 23-year-old was last seen leaving a Deep Ellum bar early on Oct. 5.
Get top local stories in DFW delivered to you every morning. Sign up for NBC DFW's News Headlines newsletter.
Marano’s arrest warrant in Dallas said police believe she is one of the last people to see Botello-Valadez before she disappeared. The woman’s body was recovered last week.
Neither the Miami-Dade County State Attorney’s Office nor Miami-Dade police offered details on the arrest, the Miami Herald reported. But online court records show Marano is not expected in court for almost two weeks after waiving the extradition hearing.
An arrest warrant showed Marano works for a company in Davenport, Florida, which is about 230 miles north of Miami.
Local
The latest news from around North Texas.
Police in Dallas said Botello-Valadez flew from Seattle to Dallas on Oct. 2 to visit a friend. That friend said she left his apartment Oct. 4 to meet some friends at a nightclub, Marano’s arrest affidavit said. A Lyft driver picked her up. She never returned to his home and missed her flight back to Seattle.
Police said no one heard from Botello-Valadez after that evening.
The Dallas County Medical Examiner identified Botello's body last week — a day after Dallas County sheriff's deputies responded to a report of human remains found in a wooded area near East Belt Line and Post Oak roads in Wilmer.
According to Marano’s arrest warrant, police traced cellphones belonging to Marano, Dykes, Beltran and Botello-Valadez to the home of Dykes and Beltran on Oct 4, which was the last evening she was seen alive.
Phone records also showed Dykes and Marano traveling south of Dallas, near Hutchins, to a densely wooded area near a concrete plant. When officials searched their residence, they found streaks of brown and red on the carpet, which had been cleaned. An analysis of DNA found on one of the carpets matched Botello's blood, according to the affidavit.
According to police, Beltran, Dykes and Marano all left their homes and jobs after the woman’s disappearance.
In December, New York State Police searched a black 2014 Audi that had previously been registered to Dykes and Beltran and had been transported to the state. They also found concrete material that matched the type and color that was being used at the concrete plant, where Dykes and Marano are thought to have traveled, the affidavit stated. A hair sample found in the car is being analyzed.
All three suspects have refused to speak with detectives and have "shown a pattern of avoidance and attempted concealment of evidence," according to the police document.
Court records in Orange County and Miami-Dade County show Dykes and Marano are being held on fugitive warrants out of Texas. It was not immediately known whether the women have retained attorneys. The search for Beltran continues.
Those who helped search for Botello during the early weeks of her disappearance are heartbroken. Hilda Duarte with LULAC said he’d held out hope until the last minute.
"We made 2,000 flyers every weekend and we were distributing them every weekend in hopes that somebody would recognize her," said Duarte. "When I found out I was feeling very low. Very disgusted that they didn’t find her alive, but at the same time happy for the family that they can have a decent burial for Marisela."
Crime Stoppers is offering up to $5,000 for information that leads to an arrest and indictment in the case. Crime Stoppers' number is 214-373-8477.
