Man forced to dress as dead girlfriend while dumping her body, Florida cops say
A man donned a wig and clothing of a woman he was accused of stabbing to death, then he forced her boyfriend to dress up like her as well and help dump her body in a nature preserve, Florida authorities said.
Giselle Santiago Bonilla, 37, and her boyfriend, 42-year-old Arnaldo Cintron, are facing charges in the death of Bonilla’s cousin, identified as Hiojaira Mercedes Velez Bonilla, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office said Aug. 19.
The couple had recently moved in with 41-year-old Velez Bonilla and her two teenage sons, but tensions came to a head Aug. 15 when Velez Bonilla began arguing with Cintron about him not paying any bills or helping out around the house, deputies wrote in a motion for pretrial detention.
Cintron is accused of pushing her to the kitchen floor, grabbing a knife from the counter and stabbing her repeatedly while swearing at her, Velez Bonilla’s boyfriend recounted to deputies.
The boyfriend told investigators Cintron and Santiago Bonilla then turned on him and blocked him from leaving.
He said Cintron told him he was going to “help them clean it up” or else he “was next,” deputies wrote in court documents.
He added Cintron threatened to kill Velez Bonilla’s son, who was in his room down the hallway, and the man’s family if he didn’t obey, according to investigators. Cintron is accused of taking the man’s phone as well.
They began cleaning up the kitchen, wrapped Velez Bonilla’s body in porch screening and put her body in a cardboard box inside her car, deputies said.
Her boyfriend said Santiago Bonillawas “a willing participant in the cleanup after the murder,” according to court documents. He recounted that Santiago Bonilla was saying her cousin was “evil” and deserved what happened to her, according to court documents.
Eventually, the victim’s son came out of his room and asked why everyone was cleaning, and where his mom was, investigators said. He told deputies his aunt and her boyfriend said they were cleaning up a spill and that his mother left to be with another man.
After cleaning up, Cintron told the boyfriend to change into his dead girlfriend’s clothes while Cintron himself put on one of her dresses and one of her wigs, deputies said.
They loaded up all the evidence from the cleanup into Velez Bonilla’s car, then Cintron got in the passenger seat and forced the boyfriend to drive to an apartment complex in Tampa, according to investigators.
Video surveillance from the neighborhood showed the boyfriend wearing a short jacket, and Cintron wearing a dress with long sleeves and a curly wig, deputies wrote in the motion.
They met up again with Santiago Bonilla, as well as another man identified only by a nickname in court documents, and together they brainstormed how to dispose of the body, according to investigators.
They decided to go to Weedon Island Preserve in St. Petersburg, and they forced the boyfriend to drive there, back up to a dense patch of mangroves and help the other two men dump her body there, deputies said.
The boyfriend said he was forced to discard some of the evidence, including the knife and cleaning supplies, into a trash compactor, deputies said.
He said Cintron then ordered him to get rid of Velez Bonilla’s car and to “remember their arrangement,” according to investigators.
Cintron also offered to share some of Velez Bonilla’s money, and asked the boyfriend for her debit card pin to access her accounts, deputies said.
Once they had all dispersed, the boyfriend went to the sheriff’s office to report what had happened, and he led law enforcement to her body near the Gandy Bridge, deputies said.
He also showed deputies where the other pieces of evidence were dumped, but the material in the trash compactor couldn’t be recovered, according to investigators.
The couple was arrested Aug. 18, but the sheriff’s office has not disclosed if the third individual accused of helping dump the body will face charges. Only the couple was arrested as of Aug. 19.
Cintron is charged with:
- Second-degree murder with a weapon
- Unlawfully holding or moving a dead human body in unapproved conditions
- Tampering with physical evidence
- Tampering with a witness
Santiago Bonilla is charged with:
- Accessory after the fact
- Unlawfully holding or moving a dead human body in unapproved conditions
- Tampering with physical evidence
- Tampering with a witness
Riverview is part of the Tampa Bay area.
This story was originally published August 19, 2025 at 6:25 PM with the headline "Man forced to dress as dead girlfriend while dumping her body, Florida cops say."