close
close

Ourladyoftheassumptionparish

Part – Newstatenabenn

Man accused by police of killing his girlfriend because he didn’t like her haircut
patheur

Man accused by police of killing his girlfriend because he didn’t like her haircut

  • Carmen Martínez-Silva was allegedly stabbed to death by her boyfriend Benjamín García, police say
  • Police accuse Garcia of also stabbing the victim’s brother, who is expected to survive.
  • Garcia allegedly tried to attack two other people at the scene, police say.

A Pennsylvania man has been arrested on several charges, including murder, for allegedly stabbing his girlfriend to death over her haircut.

Carmen Martínez-Silva, 50, was fatally stabbed on Sunday, November 3, at a home in East Hempfield Township, Pennsylvania. Lancaster County officials he said in a statement.

The statement did not name the victim, but she was identified in a GoFundMe page of his family, as well as various media, including Lancaster online, PennLive and ABC27.

Benjamín García, 49, was arrested in connection with the murder, according to unspecified court documents cited by the media. (The suspect is referred to in news reports as Benjamín García Gual, but his last name appears as “García” in online court records.)

Police responded to the residence on Sunday after receiving reports of stabbings when callers said the suspect was “standing there with a knife in his hand,” according to charging documents cited by Lancaster Online and PennLive.

At the scene, the police found Martínez Silva deceased and her brother, Luis Martínez Silva, with several stab wounds. Garcia was allegedly found with a silver kitchen knife, according to charging documents. (Luis is expected to survive, according to all three media outlets.)

Martinez-Silva’s daughter told police that Garcia allegedly stabbed the victim because of her haircut, according to a probable cause affidavit and police statements cited by PennLive. Local news 21 and Lancaster online.

A witness, identified as a relative of Martínez-Silva, told police, “Carmen cut her hair, which angered Benjamín,” according to ABC 27.

“(The suspect) told her he was going to stab her because of her haircut,” the witness said.

Carmen Martínez Silva.

GoFundMe


The daughter told police that her mother reportedly spent the night at her house because of Garcia’s alleged threat over the haircut, according to the affidavit cited by PennLive and Local 21 News.

On Sunday morning, Martinez-Silva reportedly went to Luis’s house and told another person, Hector Burgos, to notify Garcia that he planned to leave him, according to the affidavit. Burgos told police he couldn’t find Garcia at his home.

Meanwhile, García allegedly arrived at Luis’ house looking for Martínez-Silva. When Luis, to protect her, told him she was not there, Garcia allegedly left for a time before returning and stabbing Luis, investigators allege in the affidavit.

He allegedly started stabbing Martinez-Silva when she tried to get him off her brother, Burgos told police, according to PennLive, Local 21 News and ABC 27.

The affidavit alleges that Garcia also pointed the knife at Burgos and another witness, but missed both times.

Want to stay up to date with the latest crime coverage? Enroll in PEOPLE free true crime newsletter for breaking crime news, coverage of ongoing trials and details of intriguing unsolved cases.

in a GoFundMe Shared by the victim’s daughter on her Facebook, Martínez-Silva’s family said they are raising funds for her to rest properly.

“The family is devastated by this loss, we would never have imagined that a tragedy like this would happen to our beloved Carmen,” reads part of the fundraiser.

Online court records show Garcia is being held on several charges, including criminal homicide, attempted criminal homicide, several counts of aggravated assault and endangering another person. He is being held without bail.

Online court records did not show a defense attorney for Garcia, nor did they indicate whether he pleaded guilty.

If you are experiencing domestic violence, call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or visit thehotline.org. All calls are free and confidential. The hotline is available 24/7 in more than 170 languages.