The murder case against a California man accused of killing and dismembering his wife before setting her body on fire has been paused due to questions about his mental competence.
Valentino Gutierrez, 64, was charged with murder and arson after allegedly strangling his 31-year-old wife, Tiana Alfred, dismembering her body at an abandoned Pasadena restaurant, and then transporting her remains in a suitcase on a public train before setting the luggage ablaze in a Home Depot parking lot, according to Law & Crime. The gruesome killing took place in early 2018, and Gutierrez was arrested shortly after firefighters discovered human remains inside the burned suitcase.
Prosecutors said surveillance footage showed Gutierrez traveling on the Metro Gold Line with a bicycle and the suitcase, exiting at the Lincoln/Cypress Station before riding to the Home Depot on Figueroa Street. “Once the fire was put out, the firefighters found human remains,” the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office said in a statement. Investigators eventually linked the suitcase to Gutierrez and took him into custody…