CARMEL – A 27-year-old Pawling man was arrested Friday night in connection with the murder of a 66-year-old taxicab driver from Brewster who had been reported missing by his family on December 1.
Sheriff Brian Hess made the announcement at a Saturday news conference identifying the suspect as Santos Vasquez-Ramirez.
Police were summoned to the Croton Falls Reservoir off Daisy Lane in the southern portions of Carmel a week ago Sunday by a fisherman who reported finding a body in the water.
The victim was the cabbie, Aurelio Zhunio-Orbez of Danbury, who was pronounced dead at the scene.
An autopsy revealed that Zhunio-Orbez, father of four, had been murdered.
Hess said Vasquez-Ramirez was arrested at his residence and was taken into custody following a brief struggle, admitting that he strangled the cab driver over a fare.
“The case was solved by good old fashioned police work and techniques including surveillance cameras. Our investigators worked tirelessly and tracked down video evidence which linked the suspect to the crime,” Hess said. “In addition to video evidence there was also DNA and blood evidence being processed by the New York State Crime Lab.”
The sheriff said Vasquez-Ramirez, who had two prior arrests, one felony and one misdemeanor, after the killing he dragged the victim into the woods by the reservoir off Magnetic Mine Road before driving the taxi to the Purdys Metro-North Railroad Station and abandoning the vehicle.”
Hess called the crime a “brutal and senseless act of violence against a hard- working man who was serving his community.”
The sheriff said, “violent crime is not common in Putnam County but when a violent crime does occur, we work tirelessly to solve it.”
Investigator Ben Levine spoke with members of the Orbez family on Friday night. “They thanked everyone for their tireless efforts,” he said.
The victim’s niece Isabel Alvarado described her uncle as a “devoted family man and a hardworking taxi driver who formed deep bonds with the people he served. My uncle was a dedicated father, brother, uncle, and friend. He was deeply loved within his community and in other communities as well. As a local taxi driver, he built strong connections with the people he served, and many came to appreciate his kindness, generosity, and hard work.”
As Orbez was laid to rest following a funeral in Danbury, Saturday afternoon, his alleged killer was arraigned on charges of murder and robbery and was remanded to the Putnam Correctional Facility without bail.
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