A Bronx woman was arraigned Tuesday in the cold case murder of her girlfriend, whose body was found dumped in a wooded area of Westchester County 10 years ago.
Wanda Veguilla allegedly shot girlfriend Pamela Graddick in the back of the head in the Morris Avenue apartment they shared with Veguilla’s children in 2012, then dumped the body in Yonkers with the help of John Torres, authorities and reports said.
Veguilla, now 41, got the gun from Torres, now 30, and another person who supplied it to her in a paper bag, The Journal News reported.
Torres and the third person helped the accused killer wrap the body then carry it downstairs and drive it out of New York City over the border into Westchester, according to the newspaper.
Graddick, 26, was found dead on Sept. 4, 2012 wrapped in plastic in area adjacent to the Sprain Brook River Parkway, Yonkers Police Department said.
“The passage of time only reinforces our commitment to solving these heinous crimes,” Commissioner John J. Mueller said in a statement. “I hope that these arrests bring some degree of closure to Pamela’s family and friends; and I applaud the extraordinary efforts of our Cold Case Detectives in closing out this case after so many years – well done!”
Veguilla was long a suspect but the case went cold until she finally confessed to the murder during an interview at Yonkers police headquarters this year, the News said. The circumstances of the confession weren’t clear.
Veguilla was arrested in January and is facing charges of second degree murder and tampering with physical evidence, Westchester County District Attorney Mimi Rocah’s office said in a statement. Torres was indicted on charges of criminal facilitation, hindering prosecution and tampering with physical evidence.
It isn’t clear how the two knew each other.