A potential "serial killer" was captured in Florida after two women were discovered strangled to death, the Orange County Sheriff's Office announced on Monday.
Deputies said Carlos Yadiel Baez-Nieves, 25, was arrested for the deaths of Fatia Flowers, 41, and Nichole Daniels, 44, whose bodies were found in March and April.
"Because of our detectives' relentless efforts in this case, they stopped Baez-Nieves from becoming a prolific serial killer," Orange County Sheriff John Mina said during a Monday morning press conference.
Baez-Nieves was arrested and charged with two counts of first-degree murder after he was pulled over during a traffic stop for driving with a suspended license on Friday, Sheriff Mina said.
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During an interview with detectives, officials said Baez-Nieves, who moved to Central Florida from Puerto Rico in 2020, ultimately confessed to both murders.
Officials added that Baez-Nieves targeted the most vulnerable women he could – transient women who traded sex for money.
Sheriff Mina said because he is now off the streets, the community is now safer.
"He targeted women who he clearly thought would not be missed. He murdered them and dumped their bodies on the side of the road like they were trash. But, very, very grateful and thankful for our great detectives who knew that Fatia's and Nichole's lives were meaningful and that they, of course, deserve justice like all of us," Sheriff Mina said.
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Deputies stated that on two separate occasions about a month apart, Baez-Nieves picked up Flowers and Daniels and had sex with them before strangling them to death.
He then drove to an intersection, pushed their lifeless bodies out of his truck and drove home, Mina said.
The discovery of both women's bodies in the same location triggered an investigation which revealed other similarities, including both victims being transient in the East Orlando area, both having a history of narcotics usage and both were found nude or nearly nude, according to the arrest affidavit.
Authorities said he is being held without bond in the Orange County Jail on two counts of first degree murder.
Sheriff Mina said in cases like these, there's the possibility of other victims, and they're working to determine if Baez-Nieves was involved in any other incidents elsewhere in the country.
"He killed two women in a month's time, so to me, that is the definition of a serial killer. But I think this is a person who is clearly capable of doing this, and may have done it in the past, and the fact that he targeted women that he thought would not be missed leads you to believe as well that he is a killer and probably would have killed again," Sheriff Mina said.
