What to Know
- The body of 26-year-old Janet Avalo-Alvarez was found off Wolcott Road in Wolcott Tuesday and her death has been ruled a homicide.
- Her boyfriend, 32-year-old Alfredo Peguero-Gomez, has been named a suspect in the case. Police have not been able to locate him.
- Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Peguero-Gomez should call Waterbury Police.
Waterbury police say a body found in Wolcott Tuesday is that of 26-year-old Janet Avalo-Alvarez, who has been missing since Nov. 12, and the death has been ruled a homicide.
Avalo-Alvarez was last seen at La Guakara Taina Bar in Waterbury, a bar she co-owns. Her body was found in the woods of Wolcott Road in Wolcott around 5:30 p.m. Tuesday.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner has determined the manner of death as homicide and that she was strangled.
Her boyfriend, 32-year-old Alfredo Peguero-Gomez, has been identified as a suspect in the case, Waterbury police said Wednesday.
Police said officers went to the home Avalo-Alvarez and Peguero-Gomez share on Nov. 13 to perform a welfare check. Peguero-Gomez was there and told officers he did not know where Avalo-Alvarez was.
According to police, a gray 2010 Toyota Corolla with Connecticut plates owned by Peguero-Gomez left the Waterbury home around 1 a.m .on Nov. 14, traveled over the George Washington Bridge and was later found by authorities in New Jersey at Newark Liberty International Airport. Police have been unable to locate Peguero-Gomez.
Local
Investigators said they know Pequero-Gomez has left the state of Connecticut and they are working with US Marshals to find him.
Police believe Peguero-Gomez has dual citizenship in the US and Dominican Republic.
While police said they have no history of domestic disputes between the couple, friends said the relationship was rocky and that the couple wasn't getting along.
Avalo-Alvarez’s best friend Leysha Estrada said the tensions between the couple led Avalo-Alvarez to go back to Rhode Island where her family lives days before she disappeared.
“At that point she was out of the house she went back home on Saturday and by Tuesday, we already didn’t have Janet,” Estrada said.
A vigil for Avalo-Alvarez is planned for 9 p.m. outside La Guakara Taina Bar, which friends refer to as La Casa Taina.
Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Peguero-Gomez should call Waterbury Police Detectives at 203-574-6941, Crime Stoppers at 203-755-1234 or TIP.avalo-alvarez@wtbypd.org. Tips can remain anonymous.
