ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — The man named a person of interested in the disappearance of 19-year-old Miya Marcano was found dead in a Seminole County apartment on Monday, the Orange County sheriff said.
Sheriff John Mina said Armando Manuel Caballero, 27, appears to have killed himself. Marcano remains missing.
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Marcano was last seen around 5 p.m. Friday at the Arden Villas apartments on Arden Villas Boulevard, near the University of Central Florida in Orlando, where she both lived and worked.
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
Mina said Caballero, who was a maintenance worker at the complex, accessed Marcano’s apartment using a maintence key fob a half-hour before she was last seen. Mina said an arrest warrant had been issued for Caballero for burglary related to him entering her apartment without permission.
Mina said Caballero had previously expressed romantic interest in Marcano, which the Valencia College student had rebuffed.
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Marcano’s aunt, Pia Scarbriel Henry, used Monday’s news conference as an opportunity to speak directly to her niece.
“I know you’re alive, I know you’re out there,” Henry said. “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.”
Seminole County deputies said Caballero was found dead inside a unit at Camden Club Apartments in unincorporated Longwood around 10:30 a.m. Monday.
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Investigators are looking for anyone who saw Caballero’s car in recent days. It is a silver Ford Fusion with Florida tag PZU J17. Officials said it was found at the scene where Caballero was found dead and will be processed by deputies.
Deputies, including around 30 detectives, are still actively searching for Marcano.
“We are imploring anyone with any information on Miya’s whereabouts to come forward,” Mina said.
A CSI van just pulled into the Arden Villas Apartment Complex, where the search for missing 19-year-old Miya Marcano is underway. @WFTV pic.twitter.com/8mpF3YcMX7
— Ashley Edlund (@AshleyEdlund) September 27, 2021
According to deputies, Marcano is 5 feet tall and about 130 pounds.
At Marcano’s apartment complex, people are scared and shocked.
“It makes me want to move out,” Emma Pace said.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office said they have more than 30 deputies on the case.
Though several days have passed since anyone has seen Marcano, her friends and family are doing everything they can to bring her home.
#MiyaMarcano’s friends are passing out flyers near her apartment complex tonight.
— Alexa Lorenzo (@ALorenzoTV) September 28, 2021
They say they have passed out hundreds by now.
Praying for her return! 🙏🏻💗 @WFTV pic.twitter.com/HoR3XPlp4o
Anyone with information on the case is asked to contact the Orange County Sheriff’s Office at 407-836-HELP (4357).
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