[ad_1]
(KRON) — A San Mateo woman was “mercilessly” filmed by her killer in a disturbing video posted on Facebook showing the final moments of her life, according to investigators. In court documents filed by prosecutors on Friday, the homicide victim was identified as Claribel Estrella.
San Mateo County prosecutors charged 39-year-old Mark Merchikoff of Pacifica with first-degree murder, court documents show.
According to police, Merchikoff recorded video as he stabbed Estrella to death with a knife inside a San Mateo apartment, and he immediately uploaded it into Facebook. The homicide happened on the afternoon of July 26.
“While the motive for stabbing the victim is still under investigation, we do know Merchikoff mercilessly filmed the last moments of the victim’s life and posted the video to Facebook, then fled the area,” the San Mateo Police Department wrote.
Horrified Facebook users saw the violent video and called 911. One Facebook user in Nye County, Nevada told law enforcement that she had just witnessed a stabbing on Facebook. She provided the Nye County Sheriff’s Office with a name and phone number associated with the Facebook account.
“Due to the seriousness of the crime, Nye County ‘pinged’ the phone number associated to the Facebook account and it came back to the area of the 200 block of 37th Ave., a large apartment complex, (in San Mateo),” SMPD wrote.
San Mateo police officers swarmed the apartment complex and initiated a door-to-door search attempting to find the victim and suspect. Following a three-hour search, officers found the woman dead inside one of the apartments.
Officers quickly identified Merchikoff as the prime suspect and arrested him in San Jose. Police said the accused killer knew the victim. The relationship between the suspect and victim, however, is unclear.
Merchikoff was booked into a San Mateo County jail with no bail. He is scheduled to make his first court appearance Friday.
[ad_2]
