Male nurse, 48, who was arrested 16 years after ‘murdering his stepdaughter, 16, by slitting her throat’ dies after stabbing himself in the groin with a PEN in a California jail
- Raul Mata, 48, died just three weeks after he stabbed himself in the groin inside a jail in Watsonville, California
- He had been awaiting extradition for allegedly murdering 16-year-old Dilcia Mejia inside a North Miami-Dade trailer home on September 17, 2004
- Mata is said to have used a portion of a pen to stab himself in the femoral artery
- The former nurse had been hospitalized since September 28, when he stabbed himself
Raul Mata, 48, died just three weeks after he stabbed himself in the groin inside a jail in Watsonville, California
A man accused of killing his teenage stepdaughter in Florida in 2004 has killed himself in a California jail, according to local authorities.
Raul Mata, 48, died just three weeks after he stabbed himself in the groin inside a jail in Watsonville, California.
He had been awaiting extradition to Miami for allegedly murdering 16-year-old Dilcia Mejia inside a North Miami-Dade trailer home.
Mata is said to have used a portion of a pen to stab himself in the femoral artery, law enforcement sources explained to the Miami Herald.
The former nurse had been hospitalized since September 28, when he stabbed himself.
Dilcia’s throat was slit in the bedroom of a Colonial Acres mobile home park early on September 17, 2004. Mata, who called police and claimed he found the body, had long been a chief suspect in the teen’s death.
Local law enforcement immediately pegged Mata as a suspect as there were no signs of force entry and the home had not been ransacked.
He had been awaiting extradition for allegedly murdering 16-year-old Dilcia Mejia inside a North Miami-Dade trailer home on September 17, 2004. Her throat was sliced when police found her
The former nurse had been hospitalized since September 28, when he stabbed himself in the jail (pictured)
Mata was also scratched up and bruised but claimed that he had fallen on a dresser while frantically calling 911.
The case caught a break thanks to the advancement of DNA technology, according to police.
Mata’s DNA was found under Dilcia’s fingernails, an arrest warrant states. The finding suggest that she may have scratched him as she fought for her life.
Mata had been charged with murder in connection to the killing.