Woman dies; tot is found nearby

Sheriff identifies possible suspect

A woman who lived near Eureka Springs died Monday after being shot once in the head with what appeared to be a .22-caliber handgun, said Carroll County Sheriff Bob Grudek.

Laura Nayeli Aceves, 21, was found lying in a pool of blood at her residence after police received a 911 call from a friend who discovered her about 12:40 p.m. Monday.

Paramedics found a 5-month-old baby on a bed at Aceves’ residence, and the infant was turned over to a family member, Grudek said.

Aceves died from her injury after being taken by ambulance to Mercy Hospital in Rogers, he said.

During the investigation, officers identified Victor Hugo Acuna-Sanchez, 18, of Berryville as a possible suspect. He was arrested Monday at his home between Eureka Springs and Berryville on a warrant for violation of a judge’s order to have no contact with Aceves and for criminal mischief.

Grudek said officersbroke down the door to Acuna-Sanchez’s bathroom and found him hiding in the shower in his pajamas. A .22-caliber handgun was found on the shower floor.

The gun was sent to the state Crime Laboratory in Little Rock for a ballistics test against the bullet taken from Aceves’ body, Grudek said. Her body was sent to the state medical examiner’s office in Little Rock for autopsy.

The sheriff’s office is waiting for the report to determine if there’s sufficient evidence to pursue murder charges against Acuna-Sanchez. Grudek said the ballistics work could be done in a couple of days.

Grudek said there was a “history of violence between the two.”

According to a petition for order of protection filed March 8 with the Carroll County circuit clerk’s office, Aceves was pregnant with Acuna-Sanchez’ child. In the document, he is referred to as “Victor Acuna.” The couple had formerly dated and lived together, according to the petition, which was granted March 9 by Circuit Judge John R. Scott.

In the petition, Aceves wrote that Acuna-Sanchez had been violent in the past. “Have tried to leave him before but he always finds me and makes my life miserable by taking my things or my mom’s things until I get back with him,” she wrote.

The document indicated that Aceves worked at a Tyson Foods plant in Berryville. She had been living in a motel that was converted into apartments a couple of miles west of the Eureka Springs city limits, the sheriff said.

Grudek said Acuna-Sanchez, as a youth had a record of criminal offenses, but Grudek said he could not elaborate.

Acuna-Sanchez was in the Carroll County jail Wednesday afternoon. A probable-cause hearing was planned for late Wednesday, Grudek said.

Northwest Arkansas, Pages 7 on 01/03/2013

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