Ecuadorian illegal immigrant suspected in murder of 21-year-old on her birthday, burying her in Syracuse park

A 21-year-old Ecuadorian illegal immigrant has been charged with second-degree murder and concealment of a human corpse after allegedly suffocating a woman on her 21st birthday and hiding her body in a Syracuse park in New York.  

Jhon Mosies Chacaguasay-Ilbis, 21, is accused of burying 21-year-old Joselym Jhoana Toaquiza in a shallow grave, 15 feet beyond the tree line in Lincoln Park, according to prosecutors in the case. Chacaguasay-Ilbis traveled to central New York to meet Toaquiza, who he knew from school in Ecuador, per the Post Standard.  

Surveillance footage from an Airbnb showed Chacaguasay-Ilbis carrying an apparently limp Toaquiza on his back. Blood was also found in the Airbnb, according to the owner who shared the video footage with family and police. Additional video footage showed Chacaguasay-Ilbis returning to the Airbnb three hours later before quickly leaving in different clothes and taking a Lyft to a local bus station. 

Prosecutor Alphonse Williams stated that Chacaguasay-Ilbis turned himself into police in Spring Valley, Rockland County, on Tuesday, located 35 miles northwest of New York City. It remains unclear where he was or what he was doing during the week following the incident. 

Chacaguasay-Ilbis reportedly entered the US illegally in January 2023 and turned himself into Border Patrol. Prosecutor Alphonse Williams said he was applying for asylum when he arrived at the border. 

Chacaguasay-Ilbis was transported to Central New York by police on Wednesday. He is scheduled to be arraigned on Thursday. Toaquiza lived with her uncle, his wife, and children in New York. The family immigrated from Ecuador last year in an attempt to find better economic opportunities, according to the uncle.