A 61-year-old man has been charged with three counts of first-degree murder after he allegedly killed a mother, father and their 1-year-old child in Berks County, Pennsylvania, earlier this month, the district attorney said Monday.

Jose Luis Rodriguez has been charged with first-degree murder, abuse of corpse and other associated charges in connection with the deaths of Geraldina Peguero-Mancebo, 31, Jeyden Junior Peguero, 1, and Junior Cabrera-Colon, 31, Berks County District Attorney John Adams said during a press conference Monday.

Peguero-Mancebo and her 1-year-old son, who were reported missing, were found dead on Sept. 19 and 20 in Ontelaunee Township. Investigators discovered their bodies 150 yards away from each other near East Huller Lane, one week after the actual killings took place.

Adams said Rodriguez admitted he picked up Peguero-Mancebo and her son in a car on Friday, Sept. 12 and that he intended to kill the 31-year-old mother because she wouldn’t leave Cabrera-Colon. 

Adams said while it’s clear Rodriguez had some sort of relationship with Peguero-Mancebo, what it fully entailed is unclear. The two did, however, previously work together at a warehouse. Adams said Rodriguez also had rented an apartment for Peguero-Mancebo. 

According to Adams, Rodriguez told investigators he was infuriated because Peguero-Mancebo was allegedly taking his money. He then reportedly admitted to Berks County investigators that he shot her in the back of the head near East Huller Lane. After this, he took 1-year-old Junior Peguero down the street and threw him in a pond and left him to die, Adams said. An autopsy revealed the 1-year-old died from freshwater drowning after mud was discovered in his lungs. 

Geraldina Peguero-Mancebo, 31, Jeyden Junior Peguero, 1, and Junior Cabrera-Colon, 31.

Geraldina Peguero-Mancebo, 31 and Junior Cabrera-Colon, 31, and their 1-year-old son, Jeyden Junior Peguero

Berks County District Attorney’s Office

After Peguero-Mancebo and her son were killed, the 61-year-old met with Cabrera-Colon, where the two allegedly argued about Rodriguez’s involvement with the 31-year-old mother, Adams said. The argument allegedly turned physical, and Rodriguez told investigators that Cabrera-Colon dropped a gun, which the 61-year-old picked up and used to shoot him in the head.

Adams said Rodriguez then admitted to putting the Cabrera-Colon’s body into Cabrera-Colon’s car and driving it to Baer Park, where he left him. 

Reading police officers discovered Cabrera-Colon’s body on the morning of Sept. 13. Investigators eventually identified Rodriguez as a suspect in Cabrera-Colon’s murder, which he ultimately confessed to on Sept. 18. 

The night after Rodriguez’s confession, Peguero-Mancebo’s body was found in a grassy field near East Huller Lane. The following afternoon, on Sept. 20, Junior Peguero’s body was found in what Adams described as thick mud and water in an algae-covered stagnant body of water, 10-15 feet from the shoreline.

On Monday, Sept. 22, Berks County investigators met with Rodriguez, who showed them where he had stashed Peguero-Mancebo’s phone and purse and the gun he used to kill her.

“We’re still in the initial parts of the investigation. I would suggest most likely that his version is only partially accurate,” Adams said. 

The Berks County district attorney said Rodriguez had no prior criminal history.

“The loss of life of these adults that were killed was unnecessary,” Adams said. “The loss of life of that 1-year-old was cruel. It was horrible.” 

The district attorney’s office said it will be considering filing a notice to seek the death penalty for Rodriguez.

As of Sept. 23, Rodriguez was being held in the Berks County Prison.

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