Investigation unfolds as authorities link a suitcase to a suspected homicide in Vigo
Less than a week elapsed between the discovery of a woman’s body inside an abandoned suitcase on Espedrigada Street in Vigo and the arrest of a man thought to be responsible. The suspect, José Manuel Durán, known as O Chioleiro, has been in custody since Friday, March 1. With the alleged culprit behind bars, investigators from the National Police are proceeding to reconstruct the sequence of events that led to the murder. On the day of the arrest, scientific tests confirmed the identity of the victim as María del Carmen Bento Domínguez, the same woman who shared a rented room with the suspect at a shared housing unit on Fragoso 83, just a short distance from where the suitcase was found.
The suitcase at the center of the inquiry appears to be a key focus for officers. It is believed Durán González took the item from the pension where he resided with the victim. The belongings in the room, including a bloodstain on the mattress and other areas of the bedroom, point to the crime having occurred at that address. Five months earlier, on September 28, the Local Police had attended the same dwelling after complaints about a strong odor.
Neighbors recalled a persistent stench that lasted about three weeks, a detail now linked to the case. It was during this period that O Chioleiro allegedly used the suitcase found in the pension to conceal the body of María del Carmen, who had suffered a fatal stabbing to the heart, and left it in a vacant lot with overgrown vegetation on Espedrigada Street.
Witness memory of the odor was instrumental in solving the case. After the discovery of the victim and the assessment that she had been dead for six to eight months, residents alerted authorities, who traced the tenant who had rented one of the rooms with a woman who disappeared from that time forward. Investigators identified José Manuel Durán, a man previously convicted of two murders and who had been released from prison about a year prior.
The exact relationship between Durán and the victim remains unclear. Reports indicate they presented themselves at the pension as brothers, and there is no confirmed romantic link at this time, so the case is not being treated as domestic violence.
The family of María del Carmen Bento Domínguez arranged a private funeral and burial in Celanova, following the autopsy and confirmation of identity. The body was kept at a hospital until the services were held at the Parish Church of Santa Eufemia de Milmanda. The deceased was sixty years old, a daughter, and originally from a nearby locality called Moimenta, though she had lived in Vigo for many years. The events surrounding her death were kept private by the family, who have requested discretion during this period.
Maria del Carmen was identified as being at risk of social exclusion and was listed in the VioGen system due to two reports of alleged abuse from men with whom she had a relationship. One report dated back to 2008 and another to 2023, though there did not appear to be an active protection order at the time. While living in the Fragoso pension with O Chioleiro, neighbors remembered her as fragile and worn, and some linked her struggles to substance use. Local advocacy groups reportedly did not know her well.