ORLANDO, Fla. — A man, who deputies say stabbed his girlfriend to death and then led them on a chase that ended in a crash that killed two other women, has a long criminal history (rap sheet) . Jose Maisonet-Maldonado, 25, has been convicted in the past of everything from drugs to domestic violence.
DOCUMENT: Suspect's Rap Sheet
Saturday night was not the first time Maisonet-Maldonado was accused of attacking a woman. WFTV found in their news archives that he was arrested in 2005 for beating a woman with a hammer. It turns out, that woman was the same woman he's accused of murdering over the weekend.
Deputies said Jose Maisonet-Maldonado stabbed his girlfriend to death at Blanchard Park on Saturday. Then, he led deputies on a chase along Colonial Drive that ended in a crash that killed two more women.
Maisonet-Maldonado has been accused of domestic violence by many women, but has never been convicted. He'd had injunction cases and arrests for alleged violence, but no convictions in Orange County.
Prosecutors said every time stabbing victim 35-year-old Berlitz Alvelo had him arrested, she refused to follow through to see that he was convicted and punished. Five years ago, eyewitnesses saw Maisonet-Maldonado hit Berlitz Alvelo with a hammer and then try to stop her from going into a nearby store for help.
"He followed her in there and grabbed her by the hair and tried to yank her away," the unnamed eyewitness said.
New Jose Maisonet-Maldonado 042610 Jose Maisonet-Maldonado The eyewitnesses also saw the two of them punching one another before that. Both were charged, but Maisonet-Maldonado was charged with a felony, aggravated battery. However, when Alvelo decided not to cooperate and changed her story all the charges were dropped.
Three other times Alvelo would not cooperate when prosecutors were ready to take Maisonet-Maldonado to court.
"All prosecutions are difficult. It's more difficult if you have a victim who is not cooperating. It's not impossible to successfully prosecute, but it makes it highly difficult if not improbable," WFTV Legal Analyst Bill Sheaffer said.
Sheaffer said, if the victim makes a 911 call during or right after the domestic violence, that call can be used as evidence against the suspect even when the victim won't cooperate. Investigators said Alvelo told the person who called 911 for her over the weekend that Maisonet-Maldonado had stabbed her, hit her with their BMW and then left her to die.
Maisonet-Maldonado was transferred from the hospital to the jail Monday afternoon and will soon be serviced with a warrant for first-degree murder.
The two young women killed in the crash had nothing to do with Maisonet-Maldonado. They were driving on Colonial Drive when he crashed into them. One crash victim, Franchesca Jeffery, was 22 years old, and the other, Amanda Taylor, had just turned 28.
Amanda Taylor's family released a statement about her death. Her brother said she was "a loving woman, who adored her family and friends. She worked at Florida Hospital and cared about others and she will be deeply missed."
Previous Stories: April 26, 2010: Man Kills Girlfriend, Then 2 Bystanders During Pursuit
April 25, 2010: Man Kills Girlfriend, Kills Two Others During Chase
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