Brevard County Grand Jury Issues Murder Indictment

In May 2013 Death Case

            The Brevard County Grand Jury issued a first-degree felony murder indictment against a 21-year-old Palm Bay man, Carlos Rios, in connection with the May 9 death of Efrain Santiago at his home, 2861 Shwonda Ave. NE, Apartment B, in Palm Bay.

            Palm Bay investigators arrested Rios without incident on Tuesday night and the indictment, which had been sealed, was made public. Investigators worked on the case since the time of the murder, but there had been no arrests.

            Rios was also charged with armed burglary of a dwelling with an assault or battery, said Assistant State Attorney Michael Hunt who presented the case to the jury. The grand jury heard testimony from the Brevard County Medical Examiner, the lead detective, and a lay witness before deliberating and returning the indictment.

            Santiago was found deceased in his home after investigators discovered his truck on fire at an area in Palm Bay known as “The Compound.” They contacted a man who was a co-owner of the truck with Santiago, and he went to Santiago’s home and discovered the homicide.