ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — The towing company newly linked to a multi-county crime spree last week was known for strictly adhering to paperwork rules when car owners came to pick up their vehicles, according to people working for rival tow companies, potentially offering detectives a path toward catching the mysterious killers.
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Juan Cintron-Garcia, owner of JL Towing, was killed in his driveway last week when assailants fired dozens of rounds at his house.
Detectives said JL Towing hauled away the 2002 Green Acura sedan after it was found illegally parked at an apartment complex in March.
They also believe the Acura was used as the getaway car in the shooting, in addition to being used to kidnap and kill Katherine Aguasvivas approximately 14 hours after Cintron-Garcia’s death.
When a person came to pick up the Acura, they would’ve been required to show identification and proof of ownership.
It’s unclear what that would have been since the title hadn’t transferred from the car’s old owners, and the car was mostly outfitted with a series of stolen temporary tags, deputies said.
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It’s not clear why Cintron-Garcia was targeted before the kidnapping. Investigators have not yet publicly disclosed any possible motives for either death. A manager of JL Towing declined to comment when asked Tuesday.
The Acura was found abandoned for a second time on Saturday and hauled in for processing. However, given the level of sophistication seen in these crimes, investigators are keeping their hopes down.
“I know people are going to say, well, we’ll just find out who picked up the car and all that,” Seminole County Sheriff Dennis Lemma said. “They send people who are innocent parties, and they say, ‘Hey, I need you to go down there and pick up this vehicle, I’m going to give you 500 bucks, $1,000 [dollars] to pick it up.’ So it’s not as simple.”
Lemma has so far declined to say if he believes the crimes are connected to gangs or cartels, only saying his deputies were investigating the possibility.
Read: Woman missing after armed carjacking believed to be dead, Seminole County sheriff says
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