ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. – A man who investigators determined was a person of interest in a 19-year-old woman’s disappearance was found dead Monday at an apartment complex in Seminole County, according to Orange County Sheriff John Mina.
Investigators believed Armando Manuel Caballero, 27, may have known something about the whereabouts of Miya Marcano, who was reported missing last week. At a news conference Monday afternoon, Mina said Caballero appeared to have committed suicide.
[TIMELINE: Here’s what happened before, after Miya Marcano went missing]
Seminole County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a possible suicide call at the Sabal Club apartments and identified the victim as Caballero, according to a statement issued by authorities.
“Caballero vehicle was found at (the apartment complex where his body was found) and is being delivered to the sheriff’s office for processing,” Mina said. “So the death investigation of Caballero is being conducted by the Seminole County Sheriff’s Office. We have been actively searching for Caballero this weekend, and I want to reiterate — Miya is still missing. Her disappearance is suspicious and our detectives and the family members obviously suspect foul play.”
Mina made the announcement about Caballero during a news conference Monday afternoon at the Sheriff’s Office headquarters.
Investigators said Caballero was a maintenance worker at the apartment complex where Marcano was last seen. Mina added that he had “demonstrated a romantic interest in Miya” but was rejected by her several times.
MIYA MARCANO UPDATE: Armando Manuel Caballero, 27, person of interest in Miya Marcano's disappearance was found dead today. It appears he killed himself. Miya is still missing. Anyone with info on Caballero or Miya should call OCSO at 407-836-4357 or @CrimelineFL at 800-423-8477. pic.twitter.com/WBukzi8QAJ
— Orange County Sheriff's Office (@OrangeCoSheriff) September 27, 2021
Marcano was last seen around 5 p.m. Friday at the Arden Villas apartments near the University of Central Florida. Marcano’s father told News 6 on Monday that his daughter was supposed to fly to Fort Lauderdale on Friday.
“We now know that a maintenance issued master key fob, which Caballero was known to be in possession of, that was used to enter her apartment Friday afternoon at about 4:30 p.m. This would have been about 30 minutes before (Marcano) would finish her shift at the apartment complex,” Mina said.
Marcano’s family was informed of Caballero’s death on Monday.
“I was angry because he could’ve provided us with more information so I felt very angry,” Caili Sue, Marcano’s cousin, said. “We won’t give up on her period, there is just no way. We won’t leave her behind”
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Marcano’s aunt, Pia Sarbieo Henry, spoke at the sheriff’s news briefing Monday.
“Miya, this message is for you. I know you’re alive. I know you’re out there. We love you. You know our family is strong. You know our family is big. You know we will never sleep one night until we get you home,” Henry said.
Marcano, a student at Valencia College, started taking classes in August 2020 and was pursuing an Associate in Arts degree, school officials said.
Anyone with information is asked to call 407-836-4357 or 911.
“We’re looking at everything involving this case and,” Mina said. “We have at least 30 detectives who are working io just this case, to try and track down every single lead. Again, no bit of information is too small or too insignificant if someone knows of something, saw something, recognizes her face — we can take that information and you can remain anonymous.”
You can watch the full news briefing by the Orange County Sheriff’s Office in the embedded media player below: