Investigation into couple found dead in Villa Riva

National Police have identified a couple found dead in a home in the Los Rieles community of Villa Riva, Duarte province. Authorities are actively investigating the circumstances surrounding their deaths.

The deceased were identified as Brenda Liz Marte, 34, from Las Carreras, Arenoso municipality, and Luis Andrés Mena Guzmán, 40, a farmer from San Francisco de Macorís. According to the preliminary report from the Regional Northeast Directorate of the National Police, the woman was found on the floor of the residence, unclothed, with apparent signs of strangulation. The man was discovered hanging from a beam in the kitchen area.

Investigators have gathered information from family members indicating that the two individuals were in a relationship. Members of the Criminal Investigations Department and the Specialized Directorate for Attention to Women and Domestic Violence are collecting evidence and interviewing relatives and acquaintances to reconstruct the events. The bodies have been sent to the National Institute of Forensic Sciences for autopsies to officially determine the causes of death.