MANATEE — Cornelius Baskin was charged Tuesday with second-degree murder in the June 7 death of his girlfriend, Regina Nunez.

Nunez’s mother found the 23-year-old dead inside her residence at Bayshore on the Lakes Apartments, 4203 24th St. W.

An autopsy showed Nunez died by asphyxiation, according to the Manatee County Sheriff's Office.

Baskin, Nunez’s live-in boyfriend, was quickly named a a person of interest by the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office.

"It’s a case we’ve been putting together since she was murdered,” said Dave Bristow, sheriff’s office spokesman. “We developed him as a suspect the day we went out there. We’ve just been developing the case and building the case since then.”

Baskin was arrested Tuesday afternoon near his residence without incident, according to the sheriff’s office.