Crime & Safety

New Milford Man Indicted in Murder of Estranged Wife

Accused killer allegedly tried to flee the country after stabbing.

A Bergen County Grand Jury has indicted a 25-year-old New Milford man on charges he tied up, assaulted and fatally stabbed his estranged wife in her Teaneck apartment last year, county Prosecutor John L. Molinelli said Monday.

Pedro Gutierrez faces a dozen charges in the Oct. 4 slaying of 23-year-old Shaday Betancourth, including murder, kidnapping, aggravated sexual assault and weapons possession.

A relative in her East Forest Avenue home and rushed her to Englewood Hospital and Medical Center, where she died a short time later, authorities said. Investigators zeroed in on Gutierrez after they said neighbors spotted him near Betancourth’s apartment the day of the killing.

Following the grisly murder, Gutierrez boarded a flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport to Bogotá, Colombia with a layover in Florida, according to local and federal authorities. Gutierrez in Orlando minutes before takeoff to Colombia the night of the crime after Port Authority police traced his name from a passenger list. 

A , Molinelli told Patch last year. The couple, married in Colombia, separated in July 2011 but had no history of domestic violence.

Gutierrez remained at the Bergen County Jail Monday on $3 million bail. An arraignment will be scheduled within the next six weeks.


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