The San Antonio Police Department has netted a third suspect in the grim case involving a pregnant teen and her boyfriend's shooting deaths just before the holiday season. Myrta Romanos, 47, was cuffed Wednesday, facing charges related to the homicide of Savanah Soto and Matthew Guerra, as reported by KSAT.
Officials have charged Romanos with a trio of felonies: abuse of a corpse, altering or concealing a human corpse, and tampering with evidence. The SAPD used surveillance footage to definitively place Romanos at the murder scene, undermining her earlier statement to police, in which she claimed absence during the critical timeframe. This was a crucial development in a case that had previously pegged only two individuals as prime suspects, according to KSAT.
The fallen couple was found shot to death in a San Antonio parking lot, with Soto due to be induced into labor just a day after having been reported missing. Christopher Preciado, 19, and his father, Ramon Preciado, 53, were previously arrested and charged in relation to the murders. Christopher faced capital murder charges while his father was accused of helping conceal the corpses postmortem.
Romanos, believed to be Christopher's stepmother and Ramon's partner, now joins the pair in facing serious charges. "We were able to develop information from surveillance video that shows Ms. Romanos involved the night of the murder," SAPD Lt. Michelle Ramos told the media. The murder weapon, said to belong to Romanos, was reportedly used by Christopher to carry out the killings. The trio was seen in surveillance footage returning to their residence with their reputations about to be permanently marred, as detailed by Fox San Antonio.
Authorities believe the case is now closed with no further suspects at large. The tragic event, first manifesting as a disappearance, quickly escalated to a double homicide probe, concluding with Romanos's arrest. The revelation that Soto was pregnant adds a sorrowful tinge to the narrative which has gripped San Antonio closely following a violent act that has now found its alleged perpetrators fully accounted for.
