Person of interest in West Valley homicide found and in police custody
Jan 5, 2025, 1:28 PM | Updated: Jan 6, 2025, 6:54 am
SALT LAKE CITY – A West Valley City man police said is the suspect in the death of his ex-girlfriend is now in custody.
Sgt. Aymee Race with the Unified Police Department said 24-year-old Nestor Rocha-Aguayo was apprehended in Fillmore. Police said he was on a bus heading to Mexico at the time.
He became a person of interest after a missing woman’s body was discovered by investigators Saturday.
Police said family members of 31-year-old Talia Benward reported her missing on Thursday.
“Due to the nature of and circumstances of her disappearance, a team of officers and detectives were mobilized to investigate her disappearance and attempt to locate her quickly,” police said.
Investigators believed Benward was either dead or being held against her will by a “violent” ex-boyfriend.
“The family had made some concerns just on, again, the history and the nature of the violence of those cases,” Race said.
KSL found records of multiple incidents of domestic violence involving Rocha-Aguayo and Benward.
When asked about the suspect’s immigration status, Race could not specify his status but said one thing investigators were “looking at” was “aggravated reentry.”
On Saturday, police reported a detective began searching in total darkness and snowy conditions in an area of Tooele County where they believed Benward might be. Benward’s body was discovered at approximately 5:20 a.m. Saturday by a K-9 unit.
Police couldn’t say what led investigators to Tooele County for their search.
Detectives said Benward “may have suffered from blunt force trauma and trauma to her neck area,” and therefore police were investigating her death as a homicide.
The search for Rocha-Aguayo as a person of interest was connected to the shelter-in-place order issued on Saturday night to the residents near 4715 S. Arlington Park Drive.
Race said the public helped a lot with the search for the suspect.
“It was significant,” she said. “We did have quite a large activity on social media. I can’t speak for the call volume through dispatch, but a lot of people are willing to come forward.”
Rocha-Aguayo was interviewed by police Sunday night. Police would not disclose which jail he was booked into.
This story was updated with more information after its initial publication.
