A disturbing case in Summit County has left investigators piecing together conflicting stories after a man’s body was discovered along a quiet roadside last month.
Authorities say the victim was found on March 26 near Brown’s Canyon Road and was quickly identified, leading deputies to his wife, 41-year-old Reina Chavez Sandobal. She was arrested on April 1. Two days later, her boyfriend, 31-year-old Francisco Santos-Morales, was also taken into custody.
According to the Summit County Sheriff’s Office, both suspects are now facing charges of desecration of a dead body and obstruction of justice. However, neither has been formally charged with the killing itself.
Investigators say the case took a complicated turn when both suspects began blaming each other. Sandobal reportedly told police that Santos-Morales killed her husband after she confided in him about alleged abuse. But Santos-Morales claimed the opposite — that Sandobal was responsible for the fatal attack.
Police allege the two later worked together to move the body, placing it in a car before abandoning it along the rural road. Evidence, including a hammer believed to have been used in the attack and a blood-soaked blanket, was later recovered.
An autopsy confirmed the victim died from blunt force trauma to the head, and the death has been ruled a homicide.
The investigation remains ongoing as authorities work to determine exactly what happened and who is responsible.
