Rapist, Murderer caught attending funeral of victim

Students at the University of Baja California have initiated a protest in the hopes of getting justice for the murder of 20-year-old Marbella Valdez Villarreal. The university student was abducted, raped, and murdered in the city of Tijuana, Mexico. Villarreal's suspected murderer has been arrested after he turned up for her funeral and behaved strangely. Police found the suspect's DNA under the victim's nails. There were visible scratch marks on the suspect.

The young woman was reported missing on February 5. Three days after Villarreal was reported missing, her body was discovered in an abandoned plot in the El Tecolote area of Tijuana. Post mortem reports concluded that Villarreal had been raped before her murder. The victim's body had abdominal bruises and the cause of her death was determined to be strangulation.

Mourners attend the funeral arranged by Villarreal's family on February 14. An unknown man joined the mourners wearing a T-shirt with the words "Ni una mujer mas" (Not one more woman) printed on it. The tagline has been used by feminists in Mexico to draw attention to the high rate of femicide in the country.

Ironically, the murder suspect wore the T-shirt which is meant to raise awareness about violence against women. Identified only as "Juan," the suspect reportedly joined the funeral and touched the coffin, the victim's cousin stated. Police arrested Juan and found scratch marks on his body. Further tests proved that Juan's DNA was present under the victim's fingernails, explaining the scratch marks.

The Sun reported the family's claim of Juan harassing Villarreal before her abduction. It is assumed that Juan had met Villarreal at the petrol station where she had been employed. After stalking her for days, he stole her house keys. He then went to her home and abducted her. Juan held Villarreal captive in his home where he raped her before strangling her to death.

Mexican newspaper El Universal pointed out that the Executive Secretariat of the National Public Security System found Tijuana to be one of the cities with the most crimes against women. So far in 2020, 23 women have been murdered in the city.