PRINCE GEORGE'S COUNTY, Md. — The Prince George's County Police Department have arrested a man in connection to the murder of 19-year-old Dacara Thompson.
Hugo Hernandez-Mendez, 35, has been charged with first and second degree murder.
On August 23, Thompson's family reported her missing.
She was last seen getting out of her 2013 pearl white Ford Edge at the Shell Gas Station at the Eastgate Shopping Center in Lanham, Maryland.
At the time, she was wearing a dark-colored jacket and denim jeans.
Her personal belongings were later found inside of her car, which was abandoned in Hyattsville, Maryland.
Just eight days later, Maryland State Police opened a death investigation after a woman's body was located off of Route 50 in Anne Arundel County.
Police initially said,"the woman may be connected to an ongoing missing persons report in Prince George’s County," but police have since identified the woman as Thompson.
Investigators were able to obtain surveillance footage and it shows Thompson approaching a black SUV in the morning hours of August 23. After speaking to the driver, she got in the car.
The driver then drove to a home in the 12000 block of Kembridge Drive in Bowie.
Evidence suggests Thompson was murdered in a bedroom in the home.
Detectives arrested and charged Hernandez-Mendez with her murder, as he has access to the car and lives in the bedroom where the murder happened.
According to WJLA-ABC7, Hernandez-Mendez is in the United States illegally. A U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer was issued on Thursday.
Cause of death has yet to be determined.
If anyone has information regarding this case, they are asked to call the Homicide Unit at 301-516-2512.
