OVIEDO, Fla. — Seminole County deputies charged a man with second-degree murder in the death of his mother late Wednesday night.
Joshua Ortiz, 20, was arrested in Maryland after deputies said he and his mother's white Mustang were reported missing from the home.
Officials said Maryland State Police pulled over Ortiz around 5 p.m. Tuesday in Howard County, Maryland. He was arrested for grand theft auto and booked into the local jail.
WFTV's Tim Barber is in Maryland gathering details and awaiting the court hearing.
“We are glad the trooper was doing his job. He saw it was the vehicle and he took precautions and made the stop. Now we have a stolen vehicle off the street,” said Sgt. Mark Black, a spokesperson for Maryland State Police. “The information was clear that the vehicle was stolen so we would be on the lookout for it. So when he came across our radar he saw it and we made the stop.”
STORY: Not the first time Ortiz accused of stealing mother's vehicle
According to authorities, Jacqueline Ortiz, 45, was found dead Sunday afternoon by family members in her home on Woodley Park Place in Oviedo.
Investigators with the Seminole County Sheriff's Office went to Maryland to question Ortiz about his mother's death.
The second-degree murder charge was added just before 11 p.m. Wednesday.
“It's not a matter of if he's going to be returned to the state of Florida, it's just a matter of when he's going to be returned to the state of Florida,” said WFTV legal analyst Bill Sheaffer.
Neighbors told Channel 9 they were shocked to hear of the woman's death.
"I was crying yesterday because I know her. I talk to her. She's my friend," said neighbor Fatema Kaniz.
Authorities said they had listed Joshua Ortiz as missing and endangered because he made suicidal statements.
Authorities said Oviedo police and Seminole County deputies have been to the Ortiz home on multiple occasions. In August, authorities said they were called when Ortiz and his mother got into an argument about him smoking marijuana.
Channel 9 talked to a woman who said she has spent years opening her Oviedo home to struggling young people, and Joshua Ortiz went there on several occasions.
"He was troubled. He was a troubled kid looking for a way, a path in life so to speak," the unidentified woman said.
A former acquaintance of the 20-year-old, Jonathan Musa, said there was a history of problems in the family.
"He was always like, 'Dad's pushing, dad's pushing, mom's pushing, mom's pushing,'" said Musa. "You can only push someone so much before they push back."
Musa said that Joshua Ortiz did not seem to be a violent person.
"He never came across as a violent person to me. Always kind of seemed like a decent kid," said Musa.
Police reports show Joshua Ortiz has been accused of battering his mother and on another occasion waving a sword at his father, who is a former Orange County deputy. He has an arrest record and has been charged in the past with burglary and theft, according to court records.
Jacqueline Ortiz's cause of death has not been released.
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