2018 Tulum Emily 26 Manchester honeymoon Carlos pursued 6 days.
She resisted, gave in.
Husband found out, confronted them.
Carlos claimed Emily was aggressor.
She confirmed to protect herself.
Resort settled $8,000.
Emily divorced 4 months later.
Carlos moved to Puerto Viarda where he met Sarah Chen.
July 2019.
She was 25.
Girls trip.
Staying Sunset Royale where Carlos worked beach activities.
He noticed single while friends had boyfriends.
Stayed at bar after friends slept.
Laughed too hard.
Drank too much.
Seemed trying to prove something.
Approached day two.
By day three, sleeping together.
Easy.
She was sweet, open, eager to believe this was real.
Last day asked if stay in touch.
He said of course never gave real number.
She left.
He assumed never see again.
Wrong.
Four years later, January 2023, Carlos scrolling Instagram algorithm showed suggested post.
Sarahin_29 engagement photos Portland.
Woman in white dress, man in gray suit.
I said yes.
Ring can’t wait to marry my best friend on May 2nd, 2023.
He stared, knew that face, clicked profile, found 2019 throwback.
Four girls on Puerto Viarda Beach.
He remembered Sarah Chin, the sweet one who looked at him like he was everything.
She was marrying boring guy in gray suit who’d never make her feel the way Carlos had.
Wedding date, May 2nd.
For months away, something clicked.
Not love Carlos didn’t do love.
Something darker.
The idea that he’d had her once and now someone else was taking her.
That felt like losing something that belonged to him.
Created new Instagram.
CM_Pariso 2023.
Followed Sarah.
She didn’t notice.
1,847 followers.
He started watching.
Saved every wedding post.
Studied every photo with David.
Analyzed every caption.
Looking for cracks.
Looking for doubt.
Found them.
January 14th.
Sarah and David at venue.
Found our perfect spot.
Sparkles but Sarah’s looking down in photo.
February 9th.
Wedding dress shopping.
The one bride with veil.
Not exclamation.
March 22nd.
Bachelorette party.
Eight photos.
Sarah looking away in six.
April 14th invitations getting real now.
Love letter.
No heart, no excitement.
She wasn’t sure.
Going through with it because you do when you’ve told everyone.
Booked venue.
Sent invitations, but she wasn’t sure.
January 19th, Carlos decided.
Quit Tulum.
Applied six Cabo resorts targeting discount sites where cheap honeymoons book.
Pariso Delmare hired him.
Started February 1st.
Requested seventh floor.
Identified room 714 officially.
Office barely used.
Perfect.
April 23rd.
Booking came through.
Sarah Mitchell and David Mitchell.
Honeymoon.
May 8th to 15th.
Portland.
Sarah Chun became Sarah Mitchell.
Wedding happened.
Now coming to him.
Carlos opened new document.
Paraso plan.
Timeline.
Day 1 to two, let them settle, observe.
Day three, initial contact, plant seed.
Day four to five, escalation.
Remind her.
Day six, decision point.
Day seven, resolution.
Under resolution.
She chooses me or nobody gets her.
He didn’t mean it as threat.
Not consciously.
Just how his brain worked.
Women he wanted belong to him.
If they tried to belong to someone else, that was problem needing solving.
Saved document.
Closed laptop.
96 days until check-in.
100 days until David Mitchell would be dead.
Carlos Mendoza would disappear with evidence of at least eight other women he targeted.
Exactly the same way.
May 12th, 2023.
12:25 p.
m.
Sarah Mitchell sits by the infinity pool alone, staring at the room key card in her bag.
The key to room 714.
She’s been staring at it for 11 minutes.
Around her, resort life continues.
Children screaming in the shallow end.
A bachelorette party ordering their fourth round of margaritas.
A couple arguing quietly in Spanish about whose fault it is they forgot the sunscreen.
Sarah picks up her phone, opens her text thread with Emily, types, “I think I’m about to do something really stupid.
” She deletes it without sending.
Types again, “Do you remember Puerto Viarda? That guy I told you about.
” Deletes it.
Types, “I’m not happy.
” Stares at those three words for 43 seconds, then deletes them, too.
At 12:38 p.
m.
, David calls.
She jumps, almost drops her phone.
“Hey, how’s the fishing?” David’s voice is excited.
Happy.
It’s amazing.
I caught a 40 lb yellow fin.
They’re going to cook it for us at dinner tonight.
How’s the pool? It’s great.
Relaxing.
Good.
You sound weird.
You okay? Yeah, just tired.
Sunday.
Drink water.
I’ll be back around 2:30.
Love you.
Love you, too.
She hangs up.
She does not love him.
She knows that now sitting by this pool holding a room key that isn’t hers.
She doesn’t love David Mitchell.
She probably never did.
She loved the idea of him, the stability, the safety, the way her parents looked at him like he was the answer to a question they’d been asking since she was 16.
But love, real love, no.
And the worst part is she knew it on the wedding day.
She knew it when she was walking down the aisle.
She knew it when she said, “I do.
” She knew it every single time David touched her and she felt nothing.
She stayed because leaving felt impossible.
because everyone was so happy for them.
Because what would she tell people? Sorry, I changed my mind.
I wasted your time and my parents’ money because I’m too broken to know what I want.
At 1:47 p.
m.
, she’s still at the pool when David returns, sunburned and grinning, holding his phone full of photos of a fish she doesn’t care about.
They go back to room 712 together.
He showers.
She lies on the bed staring at the ceiling, feeling the room key card in her pocket like it’s burning a hole through her skin.
That night at dinner, David talks about the fishing trip for 47 minutes.
Sarah nods, says, “Wow, and that’s amazing.
” At the right times, smiles when he shows her the same photos again.
They eat the yellow fin he caught.
She can barely taste it.
At 9:34 p.
m.
, back in the room, David tries to initiate sex.
She lets him.
It lasts 11 minutes.
Afterward, he falls asleep with his arm around her.
She waits until his breathing is deep and steady.
Then, she slips out from under his arm, goes to the bathroom, closes the door.
She takes the room key card out of her shorts pocket where she’d hidden it, turns it over in her hands.
Room 714.
She could throw it away, flush it down the toilet, forget this whole thing, go back to bed, wake up tomorrow and be Sarah Mitchell, wife, dental hygienist, the girl who makes sensible choices, or she puts the key back in her pocket, opens the bathroom door.
David is snoring softly.
She gets back into bed.
At 11:47 p.
m.
, she’s still awake.
May 13th, 2023.
10:52 p.
m.
Sarah tells David she’s going to the pool for a late swim.
He’s half asleep watching something on his tablet.
Tells her to have fun.
She puts on her black swimsuit, her white resort, takes her key card, not the key to 712, the key to 714.
She walks to the elevator, rides it down to the lobby, goes to the pool.
It’s empty except for one couple in the hot tub.
She gets in the water, swims for 49 minutes, not because she wants to swim, but because she needs her hair to be wet, needs to look like she’s actually been swimming when she goes back upstairs.
At 11:41 p.
m.
, she gets out, wraps herself in her robe, takes the elevator back to the seventh floor.
The hallway is empty, silent, except for the hum of the ice machine and a TV playing in one of the rooms.
She walks toward room 712, slows down as she approaches.
Her hand is shaking when she pulls out the key card.
She looks at her door.
She looks at the door next to it.
Room 714.
She thinks about David asleep inside 712.
Trusting her, she thinks about her wedding vows, 6 days old.
She thinks about the rest of her life stretching out ahead of her.
50 years of feeling nothing.
She thinks about Carlos, about Puerto Viarda, about the way he looked at her today, like she was the only woman in the world.
At 11:47 and 14 seconds p.
m.
, she makes her decision.
She knocks on 714.
The door opens immediately.
Carlos is standing there in jeans and a white t-shirt, barefoot, like he’s been waiting.
He has.
I wasn’t sure you’d come, he says.
I wasn’t either.
You can still leave.
No pressure.
But they both know she’s not leaving.
She steps inside.
The door closes behind her.
Room 714 is smaller than 712.
One bed, a desk, a chair, no ocean view.
There’s a bottle of wine on the desk already open.
Two glasses.
I remembered you like red, Carlos says.
She doesn’t remember ever telling him that, but he’s right.
They talk for 23 minutes.
He pours wine.
She drinks it too fast.
He asks about her life, her job, her friends.
Doesn’t ask about David.
Doesn’t ask about the wedding.
He’s too smart for that.
Instead, he talks about Puerto Viarda.
Specific details she’d forgotten.
The bar where they met, the song that was playing, the way she laughed when he tried to teach her Spanish.
He’s building a bridge back to that version of herself, the one who felt free and wanted and alive.
At 12:18 a.
m.
, he moves closer to her on the bed where they’re sitting.
At 12:19 a.
m.
, he kisses her.
She kisses him back.
At 1:21 a.
m.
, she leaves room 714.
Her hair is messy.
Her robe is tied wrong.
She looks directly at the security camera for 2 seconds, and her expression is impossible to read.
She enters room 712.
David is asleep.
She gets into bed.
doesn’t sleep.
May 13th, 2023.
Sarah is different today.
Quieter.
David notices, asks if something’s wrong.
She says she didn’t sleep well.
He suggests they do something relaxing.
They spend the day at the beach.
She barely speaks.
Her phone vibrates 14 times between 2:17 p.
m.
and 6:43 p.
m.
She doesn’t check it in front of David.
When he’s in the bathroom, she reads the messages.
All from a number she doesn’t recognize.
Thinking about last night.
Can’t stop thinking about last night.
When can I see you again? Tonight.
Sarah, you okay? Talk to me.
She doesn’t respond, but she doesn’t delete them either.
At 10:47 p.
m.
, Sarah tells David she’s not feeling well.
Going to take a bath, go to bed early.
He says, “Okay.
” He’ll watch TV in the sitting area.
At 11:23 p.
m.
, Sarah comes out of the bathroom in her robe, tells David she’s going to get ice and a snack, takes her room key, leaves her phone charging on the nightstand.
Intentional.
Can’t have David seeing those messages if he picks it up.
At 11:26 p.
m.
, security footage shows Sarah entering room 714.
The audio device Carlos planted records everything.
Carlos, you came back.
Sarah, I shouldn’t be here.
Carlos, but you are.
Sarah, this is crazy.
I’m married.
6 days married, Carlos.
To the wrong man, Sarah.
You don’t know him, Carlos.
I know you.
I knew you four years ago, and I know you now.
You’re not happy, Sarah.
Crying.
How did you know I’d be here at this resort? Carlos, I didn’t.
This is fate.
He’s lying, but she wants to believe it.
They talk for 2 hours and 17 minutes.
The recording captures moments of conversation, moments of silence, moments of physical intimacy, and then at 1:31 a.
m.
, Sarah, I don’t know what to do.
Carlos, leave him.
Sarah, just like that, Carlos, why not? You don’t love him.
He’ll get over it.
Sarah, what about after? What happens with us, Carlos? Anything you want, you can stay here.
I’ll help you figure it out.
I’ve done this before.
Sarah done what before.
Carlos helped women leave bad situations.
Sarah, David’s not a bad guy.
He’s just Carlos.
Not right for you.
I get it.
At 1:43 a.
m.
, Sarah leaves.
The camera shows visible distress on her face.
Possible tears.
May 14th, 2023.
Morning.
The fight.
A maid cleaning the room next door hears it through the wall.
David, you’ve been distant this whole trip.
Sarah, I’m tired.
David, I’m on vacation.
David, we’re on our honeymoon.
Sarah, pause.
Well, maybe that’s the problem.
David, what does that mean? Sarah crying.
I don’t know.
I don’t know.
They don’t leave the room until 2:34 p.
m.
When they finally go to the pool, they sit in separate chairs, barely speak.
At 4:19 p.
m.
, Sarah says she’s going to shower.
David stays at the pool, but Sarah doesn’t go back to 712.
She goes to 714.
The audio device captures Carlos.
You told him, Sarah.
Not exactly.
We fought.
I think he knows something’s wrong.
Carlos, you need to be clear with him tonight, Sarah.
And say what? Sorry.
I don’t want to be married anymore.
I want to be with the resort manager I had a fling with 4 years ago, Carlos.
Say you made a mistake.
Say you’re not ready.
Say anything, but say it.
Sarah, then what? Carlos, then you’re free, Sarah.
Free to what? Run away with you, Carlos.
If you want, Sarah, pause.
Do you actually want that or is this just I don’t know what this is, Carlos.
I want you.
I’ve wanted you since Puerto Viarda.
That’s why I’m here.
Another lie.
But she believes it.
Sarah.
Okay, Carlos.
Okay, what? Sarah, I’ll tell him tonight at 7:11 p.
m.
Sarah and David eat dinner in silence.
At 9:34 p.
m.
, back in room 712, Sarah tries to start the conversation three times.
Each time, David interrupts, talking about tomorrow’s plans, oblivious.
At 10:52 p.
m.
, she gives up trying to find the right words.
just says it.
David, I want a divorce.
He laughs, thinks she’s joking.
When he realizes she’s serious, he asks why.
She can’t tell him the truth.
Says she made a mistake.
Says she’s not ready for marriage.
Says she’s sorry.
He doesn’t believe her.
Thinks it’s honeymoon stress.
Tells her to sleep on it.
They’ll talk in the morning.
At 11:38 p.
m.
, Sarah leaves the room.
Says she needs air.
David doesn’t stop her.
At 11:47 p.
m.
, security footage shows Sarah knocking on room 7:14 for the third time.
The audio device records.
Sarah, I told him I want a divorce.
Carlos, what did he say? Sarah, he thinks I’m crazy.
He thinks it’s stress.
Carlos, come here.
Sounds of movement.
Kissing.
Sarah, what happens now, Carlos? You stay with me tonight.
We’ll figure out tomorrow, Sarah.
Just like that, Carlos.
Just like that.
I’ll take care of everything.
At 12:52 a.
m.
, there’s a knock on the door.
Both freeze.
Carlos whispered, “Did he follow you?” Sarah whispered, “I don’t know.
” “The knock comes again,” louder, then a voice.
“Sarah, are you in there?” David found her.
At 12:53 and 11 seconds a.
m.
, Carlos opens the door to room 714.
David Mitchell is standing in the hallway.
He sees Sarah inside, sitting on the bed, wearing only Carlos’s t-shirt.
The audio device captures his exact words.
What the [ __ ] is this? Sarah starts crying.
Carlos steps between them.
Man, listen.
Let me explain.
David, explain.
We’ve been married for 6 days.
Sarah.
David, I tried to tell you.
David, tell me what? That you’re [ __ ] the resort manager.
Carlos.
Hey, don’t talk to her like that.
David, don’t talk to her.
You’re sleeping with my wife.
The argument escalates.
Sarah is screaming.
David is shouting.
Carlos is trying to calm them.
Neighbors will later report hearing the commotion, but no one calls security.
This is a resort.
People fight.
At 12:56 and 22 seconds a.
m.
, David lunges at Carlos.
Carlos sideeps.
David crashes into the desk.
The lamp marble approximately 8 lb falls to the floor.
David picks it up.
Sarah screams.
David swings the lamp at Carlos.
Misses.
Carlos grabs David’s wrist.
They struggle.
At 12:56 and 34 seconds a.
m.
, the audio device goes silent, either knocked over or destroyed.
The next piece of audio doesn’t come until 2:34 a.
m.
when Sarah calls 911 and tells them her husband is dead.
May 17th, 2023.
2:34 a.
m.
The 911 call comes from a cell phone registered to Sarah Elizabeth Mitchell, located on the 7th floor of Paraso Delmare Resort.
The call connects to emergency services in Cabo San Lucas.
Duration 4 minutes and 17 seconds.
The recording would later be played in court 23 times.
Every jury member would hear it.
Some would cry.
The dispatcher speaks first in Spanish.
Erentes Q es sue emergencia.
Sarah’s voice is screaming, hyperventilating, barely intelligible.
He’s dead.
Oh my god, he’s dead.
Please, you have to send someone.
The dispatcher switches to English.
Her voice trained to remain calm.
Ma’am, I need you to slow down.
Who is dead? My husband.
David, there’s so much blood.
Oh god, there’s so much blood.
Where are you located? Paraso Delmare Resort, 7th floor.
I don’t I don’t know the room number.
712.
The hallway outside 712.
Okay, stay with me.
What happened to your husband? Sarah’s breathing is ragged, interrupted by what sounds like vomiting.
He He attacked us.
He found me with He went crazy.
And who attacked you, ma’am? Is the attacker still there? No, he’s David is.
He’s the one who’s The words dissolve into incomprehensible sobbing.
Ma’am, I need you to tell me clearly.
Is your husband the one who attacked you or did someone attack your husband? David attacked me.
He found me with Carlos and he tried to He was going to kill me.
Who is Carlos? The resort manager.
He was trying to stop David.
And oh god, his head.
I can see more vomiting sounds.
The dispatcher continues.
Methodical.
Is your husband breathing? I don’t know.
I don’t.
There’s so much blood.
I can’t.
I need you to check if he’s breathing.
Can you do that for me? 18 seconds of silence then.
No, he’s not breathing.
His eyes are open, but he’s not.
Oh god.
Oh god.
Oh god.
Okay, help is on the way.
Stay on the line with me.
Are you injured? My face.
He hit me.
My face hurts.
Did your husband hit you? Yes.
He was trying to kill me.
Carlos stopped him.
Where is Carlos now? Pause.
3 seconds.
Then I don’t know.
He ran.
He told me to call 911 and then he ran.
Which direction did he go? I don’t know.
I wasn’t I couldn’t.
Everything happened so fast.
Okay, stay where you are.
Police and medical are on the way.
Do not touch anything.
Do not move your husband.
Just stay on the line.
Is he is David? Can they save him? The dispatcher doesn’t answer that question directly.
They’ll do everything they can.
How long ago did this happen? Another pause.
Longer this time.
5 seconds.
I don’t know.
Maybe maybe 10 minutes.
I don’t know.
I was in shock.
I couldn’t I didn’t know what to do.
That answer, that specific answer would become critical later because the audio recording device in room 714, the one that went silent at 12:56 and 34 seconds a.
m.
proves that 10 minutes is a lie.
The incident happened at 12:56 a.
m.
The 911 call came at 2:34 a.
m.
That’s not 10 minutes.
That’s 1 hour and 38 minutes.
What was Sarah doing for 98 minutes before she called for help? Police arrive at 2:40 a.
m.
6 minutes response time.
Two municipal police officers, Miguel Ruiz and Wana Santos, both in their 30s, both with less than 5 years on the job, neither prepared for what they find on the seventh floor.
The hallway is bright, fluorescent lights humming, the ice machine rumbling, and in the space between rooms 712 and 714, David Mitchell is lying face up on the carpet, eyes open and fixed, a pool of blood spreading beneath his head in a shape that looks almost like wings.
Sarah Mitchell is sitting on the floor approximately 11 ft away.
Her back against the wall, her white resort robe soaked red, her face showing visible bruising on the left cheek, split lip, eyes unfocused.
When Officer Ruiz approaches, she doesn’t look at him, just stares at her hands, which are covered in blood.
Officer Santos checks David for pulse, finds none.
She radios for medical examiner and crime scene unit.
Officer Ruiz kneels next to Sarah, asks if she can stand.
Sarah nods but doesn’t move.
He helps her to her feet.
She’s shaking so violently her teeth are chattering despite the hallway being 74°.
Ma’am, I need to ask you some questions.
Can you tell me what happened? Sarah’s voice is a whisper.
He tried to kill me.
Carlos saved me.
David wouldn’t stop.
Carlos had to.
He had to hit him.
Where is Carlos now? I don’t know.
He ran.
When did he run? Right after it happened, Sarah nods, but the timeline doesn’t work.
If Carlos ran immediately after the incident, why did it take 98 minutes for Sarah to call 911? Officer Santos begins photographing the scene with her phone while they wait for the crime scene unit.
The photos show David Mitchell, 31 years old, wearing navy blue pajama pants and a gray t-shirt with Portland Trailblazers logo.
Position supine, arms at sides, legs straight, head tilted slightly to the right, blood pooling from apparent head trauma, soaking into beige hallway carpet in a circular pattern approximately 4 feet in diameter.
Weapon.
Marble desk lamp.
Base approximately 8 in wide, 8 lb, found 11 feet from body, lying on its side.
The base is covered in blood and what appears to be hair and tissue.
The lampshade is missing, later found inside room 714.
undamaged blood spatter pattern concentrated around victim’s head with castoff spatter on the wall above and to the right suggesting at least three impacts from a swinging motion.
Some blood spatter on the door to room 714 approximately 5 ft high consistent with medium velocity impact.
Additional evidence visible in initial photos.
Sarah’s resort robe blood soaked.
Small blood smears on the wall near where Sarah is sitting, handshaped, suggesting she touched the wall while sliding down to sitting position.
No blood trail between Sarah’s position and David’s body, suggesting she didn’t move after sitting down.
Medical examiner arrives at 3:17 a.
m.
Raone Herrera, 52 years old, has been doing this job for 19 years.
He’s seen 1,847 bodies.
This one he’ll later testify was immediately suspicious.
He examines David without moving him.
Takes body temperature 94.
3° F.
Ambient temperature 74°.
Rough time of death estimate between 1:00 a.
m.
and 2:00 a.
m.
He notes this verbally to the officers.
If death occurred around 1:00 a.
m.
and Sarah called 911 at 2:34 a.
m.
, that’s consistent with her 10 minutes claim being wildly inaccurate.
Herrera examines the head wounds for distinct impact sites.
One on the right temple, one on the right parietal bone, one on the back of the skull, one on the left parietal bone.
He notes verbally, the impact to the back of the skull is problematic.
Officer Ruiz asks why.
Because if this was self-defense, if the victim was attacking and the defender struck back, you’d expect frontal injuries, possibly side injuries if the victim was turning.
But a blow to the back of the head suggests the victim was facing away or already down.
Sarah, still sitting against the wall, starts crying harder.
Crime scene unit arrives at 3:44 a.
m.
for technicians begin processing the scene.
They photograph everything, measure everything, collect everything.
Findings.
Room 714.
Interior.
Bed unmade.
Sheets disturbed.
Two wine glasses on desk.
Both containing red wine residue.
One glass has lipstick mark consistent with Sarah’s lipstick.
Fingerprint analysis later confirms both glasses were handled by Sarah and Carlos.
Clothing on floor.
Men’s jeans.
Men’s white t-shirt.
Women’s black swimsuit.
Women’s white resort robe, different from the bloody one Sarah is wearing.
Bathroom, two damp towels.
Shower stall shows evidence of recent use.
Most critical.
On the desk where the lamp had been sitting, there’s a clear empty space.
But there’s also a small device roughly the size of a USB drive, partially hidden behind a stack of resort paperwork.
One of the technicians picks it up, turns it over, recognizes it immediately.
Audio recording device, voice activated, battery still showing 40% charge.
They bag it as evidence.
At 4:11 a.
m.
, Sarah is transported to hospital for medical examination and treatment.
Her injuries are documented.
Contusion to left cheekbone 2 cm in diameter consistent with blunt force impact.
Laceration to lower lip 1 cm.
Bleeding stopped.
No other visible injuries.
No defensive wounds on hands or arms.
Rape kit performed at Sarah’s request.
Results later show recent sexual activity, but no signs of assault.
At 6:23 a.
m.
, Sarah is released from hospital and transported to police headquarters for formal interview.
The interrogation room is small, concrete walls painted institutional beige, one metal table, three chairs, a camera mounted in the corner.
Sarah sits across from Detective Maria Salazar, 43 years old, 16 years with Cabo San Lucas police, specializing in violent crimes and domestic incidents.
Detective Salazar has already reviewed the crime scene photos, the 911 call recording, and the preliminary medical examiner report.
She has questions.
The interview begins at 7:14 a.
m.
Detective Salazar reads Sarah her rights in English.
Sarah confirms she understands, declines a lawyer, says she wants to help, wants to tell them what happened.
Detective Salazar, take me through the evening.
Start from dinner.
Sarah, we had dinner at the resort restaurant around 7:00.
David was upset because we’d had a fight earlier.
We barely talked during dinner.
After we went back to the room around 9:30, I told him I wanted a divorce.
Detective Salazar, you told your husband of 6 days that you wanted a divorce, Sarah.
Yes, Detective Salazar.
Why, Sarah? Because I made a mistake.
I shouldn’t have married him.
I realized that on this trip, Detective Salazar, how did he react? Sarah, he didn’t believe me.
He thought I was stressed.
He said we’d talk in the morning, but I couldn’t I couldn’t be in that room with him.
I left around 11:30.
Detective Salazar.
Where did you go? Sarah hesitates.
2 seconds then to see Carlos.
Carlos Mendoza, the resort manager.
Detective Salazar.
Why, Sarah? Because I’d been we’d been seeing each other since day four of the honeymoon.
Detective Salazar.
You were having an affair, Sarah.
Yes.
Detective Salazar.
And David didn’t know.
Sarah, not until last night.
He followed me to Carlos’s room, room 714.
He knocked on the door around 12:30.
Detective Salazar.
Around 12:30 or exactly 12:30.
Sarah, I don’t know exactly.
I wasn’t looking at a clock.
Detective Salazar.
What happened when he knocked Sarah? Carlos opened the door.
David saw me inside.
He lost it.
Started yelling.
Carlos tried to calm him down, but David was he was out of control.
He came at me, grabbed my face.
She touches her bruised cheek.
He was screaming that I was a [ __ ] that I ruined everything.
Carlos got between us, told David to calm down.
David shoved him.
Carlos shoved back.
Then David picked up the lamp and her voice breaks.
She’s crying now.
Detective Salazar.
What did David do with the lamp? Sarah.
He swung it at Carlos, tried to hit him in the head.
Carlos dodged it.
They were fighting over the lamp.
I was screaming at them to stop.
Then David broke free and came at me with it, raised it over his head, and Carlos Carlos grabbed him from behind.
They struggled.
David turned, swung the lamp back at Carlos, hit him in the shoulder.
Carlos grabbed the lamp.
They fought for it.
Then Carlos got it away from him and Detective Salazar.
And what Sarah? He hit David with it.
David fell.
Hit his head on the floor.
We thought he was just We didn’t know he was Detective Salazar.
You thought he was unconscious? Sarah.
Yes.
Detective Salazar.
Then what happened? Sarah.
Carlos told me to go back to my room.
Lock the door.
he’d handle it.
But I couldn’t leave David.
So I went into the hallway.
David was He wasn’t moving.
There was blood.
I tried to wake him up.
He wouldn’t wake up.
Panicked.
I went back to room 714.
Carlos was packing his stuff.
He said we had to call the police, but we needed to get our story straight first.
He said if we told them the truth that David attacked us, that Carlos defended us, we’d be okay.
But we had to be consistent.
Detective Salazar.
So, you rehearsed what to say? Sarah, he just he wanted to make sure I wouldn’t forget anything because I was in shock.
Detective Salazar, how long did this rehearsal take? Sarah, I don’t know.
Maybe 20 minutes.
Detective Salazar.
And then what? Sarah.
Then Carlos said he had to go.
That if he stayed it would look bad, like he was running from the scene.
But if he left before we called, then came back later, it would look like he didn’t know it was serious.
He told me to wait 30 minutes, then call 911.
He said to say I didn’t know where he went, that he ran because he was scared.
Detective Salazar leans forward.
Sarah, I need you to be very clear about this.
You’re saying Carlos told you to wait 30 minutes before calling for help? Sarah nods.
Detective Salazar, did you wait 30 minutes? Sarah, I I think so.
I don’t know.
I wasn’t watching the time.
I was sitting in the hallway with David and I was trying to figure out if he was breathing and I I lost track.
Detective Salazar.
The 911 call came at 2:34 a.
m.
The medical examiner estimates David died between 1:00 and 2:00 a.
m.
The incident, based on noise complaints from neighboring rooms, occurred around 12:50 to 1:00 a.
m.
That means you waited between 1 and 12 to 2 hours to call for help.
Sarah’s face goes white.
No, that’s not.
I didn’t wait that long.
It was maybe 30 minutes.
45 at most.
Detective Salazar.
Sarah, your husband was dying in that hallway for almost two hours while you and Carlos decided how to tell the story.
Sarah, no.
We didn’t know he was dying.
We thought he was unconscious.
Carlos said head wounds bleed a lot, but David would probably be okay.
Detective Salazar, where’s the night gown you were wearing? Sarah, what? Detective Salazar, when police arrived, you were wearing a white resort robe, blood soaked, but witnesses say you were wearing a different robe earlier in the evening.
And when we searched room 714, we found a black swimsuit and a white robe.
So, you changed clothes at some point.
Where’s what you were wearing during the incident, Sarah? I don’t I don’t remember changing.
Detective Salazar, you don’t remember or you don’t want to say.
Sarah, I want a lawyer.
The interview ends at 8:02 a.
m.
While Sarah is being interrogated, a team of officers searches Carlos Mendoza’s employee quarters.
Room 19 in the staff building, a single room with shared bathroom down the hall.
The room is empty.
Bed stripped, closet empty, bathroom toiletries gone.
The only things left behind, a resort uniform hanging on a hook and a phone charger still plugged into the wall.
Carlos’s car, a 2019 Nissan Sentra registered in his name, is gone from the employee parking lot.
Security footage from the resort’s rear entrance shows Carlos leaving at 12:59 a.
m.
Carrying a large duffel bag, walking quickly to his car, driving away.
He had less than a 3minut head start before David was killed.
Alert issued.
Bolo for Carlos Javier Mendoza, 34 years old, 5′ 10 in, 180 lb.
Last seen driving a gray Nissan Sentra.
License plate BCS 4782.
Wanted for questioning in connection with the death of David Mitchell.
Approach with caution.
The search begins.
May 17th, 9:43 a.
m.
Carlos’s car is found in Toto Santos, a small tourist town 47 mi south of Cabo San Lucas.
The car is parked behind a restaurant, unlocked, keys on the front seat.
Security footage from a nearby bus station shows a man matching Carlos’s description boarding agila bus to La Paz at 5:22 a.
m.
He’s wearing a baseball cap, sunglasses, carrying the same duffel bag seen in the resort footage.
The bus company confirms ticket purchased with cash, no name recorded.
Passenger got off at La Pa bus terminal at 7:08 a.
m.
From there, the trail goes cold.
La paz is a city of 250,000 people.
Major airport, ferry service to mainland Mexico.
Dozens of bus routes to destinations across the country.
Carlos could be anywhere.
Interpol is notified.
Alert sent to Mexican Federal Police, US Border Patrol, all airports in northwestern Mexico.
May 18th, 2023.
Crime scene technicians finish processing room 714.
They find the audio recording device.
They find Carlos’s fingerprints on the wine glasses, on the lamp, on the door handle.
They find Sarah’s fingerprints in the same places.
But they also find something else behind a desk drawer, a laptop.
MSI model, several years old, password protected.
The laptop is seized as evidence.
Computer forensics specialist Maria Contrarus cracks the password in 47 minutes.
She opens the laptop, begins reviewing the contents.
At 3:17 p.
m.
, she calls Detective Salazar.
You need to see this right now.
Detective Salazar arrives at the forensics lab at 3:44 p.
m.
Maria shows her the screen, a folder labeled SM.
inside 247 image files, screenshots of Instagram posts, all from the same account, Sarahin_29.
The screenshots span from January 14th, 2023 to May 7th, 2023.
Every single post Sarah made during that time period.
Her engagement announcement, her wedding dress shopping, her bachelorette party, her wedding day, her honeymoon countdown.
He was stalking her.
Detective Salazar says it gets worse.
Maria says she opens another file, a document titled Paraso Plan.
d docs, created January 19th, 2023.
Last modified May 14th, 2023.
The document contains a detailed timeline.
Day 1 to2, observation phase, confirm patterns.
Day three, initial contact.
Establish recognition.
Day four to five, escalation, physical intimacy.
Day six, decision point.
She chooses me or she loses choice.
Day seven, resolution.
Under resolution, a single line.
If she won’t leave him, he has to go.
Detective Salazar reads it twice.
This is permeditation.
Maria nods.
There’s more.
She opens another folder.
Video files.
47 video files.
Each one labeled with initials and a date.
SM_051423.
mov is the most recent.
Maria clicks it open.
The video shows room 714.
The camera is positioned on the desk angled toward the bed.
Timestamp.
May 14th, 2023.
1:11 a.
m.
David Mitchell’s body is in the hallway.
He’s been dead for approximately 15 minutes.
In the video, Sarah is sitting on the bed crying, shaking.
Carlos is standing in front of her, holding his phone, recording her.
Carlos, okay, we need to get this right.
The police are going to ask you questions, and you need to be consistent.
Repeat after me.
David attacked me.
Sarah.
David attacked me.
Carlos, I was trying to stop him.
Sarah, I was trying to stop him.
Carlos, he wouldn’t stop.
He was going to kill me.
Sarah, he wouldn’t stop.
He was going to kill me.
Carlos, you stepped in to defend me.
Sarah, you stepped in to defend me.
Carlos, no.
Wait.
Say, “You stepped in to defend me and David turned on you, Sarah.
” You stepped in to defend me and David turned on you, Carlos.
Good.
Now with more emotion.
You were terrified.
Sarah does it again.
This time crying harder, voice shaking.
Carlos, perfect.
Remember that.
Stick to that exact story.
I’m going to run.
You’re going to wait exactly 30 minutes.
Then call 911.
Tell them you don’t know where I went.
Tell them I panicked and ran.
Can you do that? Sarah nods.
Carlos, say it, Sarah.
I can do that, Carlos.
Good girl.
The video ends.
Detective Salazar stares at the screen.
Her hands are shaking.
This isn’t self-defense.
This is murder.
And they rehearsed the cover up while the victim was still bleeding out in the hallway.
May 19th, 2023.
11:47 a.
m.
Sarah Elizabeth Mitchell is arrested in her hospital room where she’s been held under guard for observation.
The charges: Firstderee murder and conspiracy to commit murder under Mexican federal law.
Detective Salazar reads the charges in English.
Sarah, sedated and exhausted, barely reacts, just closes her eyes when she hears the word murder.
Her parents, Robert and Linda Chun, have been on a plane since 6:00 a.
m.
flying from Portland to Cabo San Lucas after receiving a call from the US Embassy that their daughter’s husband was dead and their daughter was a suspect.
They land at 2:34 p.
m.
They’re not allowed to see Sarah.
By 6:00 p.
m.
, the story has broken internationally.
CNN American honeymooner killed in Mexico.
Wife arrested.
Fox News.
Cabo murder.
bride charged in husband’s death.
The New York Times honeymoon tragedy raises questions about resort safety.
The comment sections fill immediately.
Half the commenters assume Sarah is guilty.
Cheating wife.
Crime of passion.
She deserves everything coming to her.
The other half assume she’s a victim.
Manipulated by predatory resort manager.
Clearly self-defense.
Mexican police railroading an American woman.
Nobody has seen the rehearsal video yet.
May 23rd, 2023.
After 4 days of diplomatic negotiations between US and Mexican authorities, an agreement is reached.
Sarah will be extradited to the United States to face charges in federal court.
The agreement is unusual.
Murder is typically prosecuted where it occurs, but David Mitchell was a US citizen.
Sarah Mitchell is a US citizen and the US Attorney’s Office in Oregon argues they have jurisdiction under the Maritime Drug Law Enforcement Acts provisions for crimes against US nationals abroad.
The real reason the Mexican prosecutor knows this case will be a media circus and Mexico doesn’t want the international attention on their tourism industry.
Better to let the Americans handle it.
Sarah is transferred to US custody on May 28th, 2023.
She’s flown to Portland under guard, processed at Multma County Jail, assigned a public defender named Katherine Walsh, 41 years old, 12 years as a defense attorney, won seven of her last nine murder trials.
Bail hearing, June 2nd, 2023.
The prosecution argues Sarah is a flight risk with ties to Mexico through Carlos Mendoza, who is still at large.
The defense argues Sarah has no criminal history, strong family ties, nowhere to run.
The judge denies bail.
Sarah will remain in custody until trial.
Trial date set January 8th, 2024.
Robert and Linda Chun mortgage their house to pay for Sarah’s defense.
They hire a private investigator to find Carlos Mendoza.
They hire a jury consultant.
They hire expert witnesses.
They spend $340,000 before the trial even begins.
David Mitchell’s parents, Gerald and Patricia Mitchell, both retired teachers from Eugene, Oregon, speak to media outside the courthouse after the bail hearing.
Gerald reads from a prepared statement, his voice shaking.
Our son was murdered on what should have been the happiest week of his life.
Sarah Mitchell took him from us.
She and her lover planned this.
We will not rest until she pays for what she did.
Patricia adds offscript.
She’s a monster.
Our son loved her and she killed him.
The media runs that sound bite for 3 months.
September 15th, 2023.
The prosecution files a motion to admit the rehearsal video as evidence.
The defense files a motion to suppress it, arguing it was obtained without a warrant from a laptop that wasn’t legally seized.
Judge Marcus Brennan, 58 years old, appointed to federal bench in 2019, rules the laptop was abandoned property found in a crime scene.
Therefore, no warrant was required.
The video is admissible.
Catherine Walsh knows her case just got exponentially harder.
October 3rd, 2023.
A break in the Carlos Mendoza manhunt.
A woman in Guatemala City contacts the FBI tip line.
She says a man matching Carlos’s description is working at a resort called Vista Pacifica under the name Javier Cruz.
She recognized him from news coverage.
FBI coordinates with Guatemalan authorities.
They raid the resort on October 7th.
The man calling himself Javier Cruz is gone.
Disappeared 3 days earlier.
Employees say he quit suddenly.
Didn’t give notice.
Didn’t collect his last paycheck.
Forensics find fingerprints in his employee quarters.
They match Carlos Mendoza.
He was there.
He got tipped off somehow.
He’s gone again.
November 18th, 2023.
Another sighting, this time in Medí, Colombia.
A bartender at a hostel popular with backpackers says a man matching Carlos’s description stayed there for 2 weeks in October.
Paid cash, kept to himself.
Security footage from the hostel shows a man who might be Carlos, but the angle is bad.
The resolution is worse.
FBI sends the footage to facial recognition.
Results: 73% probability match.
Not enough for confirmation.
By December, the FBI has received 847 tips about Carlos Mendoza sightings.
41 are investigated.
Zero lead to arrest.
Carlos Mendoza has vanished.
January 8th, 2024.
United States versus Sarah Elizabeth Mitchell begins in federal court in Portland, Oregon.
Judge Brennan presiding.
Jury selection takes 3 days.
Final jury, seven women, five men, ages ranging from 24 to 67.
Mix of occupations.
Teacher, engineer, retired nurse, barista, accountant, construction worker, social worker, graphic designer, bank teller, retail manager, IT specialist, small business owner.
The prosecution is led by assistant US attorney James Reeves, 46 years old, former Army Jag prosecutor, 34 to2 record in murder trials.
His opening statement is devastating.
Ladies and gentlemen, this case is about a woman who made a choice.
Sarah Mitchell chose to marry David Mitchell on May 2nd, 2023.
She chose to go on a honeymoon with him.
She chose to have an affair with Carlos Mendoza 4 days into that honeymoon.
She chose to tell her husband she wanted a divorce on day six.
And when her husband discovered her affair and confronted her and the man she was sleeping with, she and Carlos Mendoza chose to kill him.
Not in self-defense, not in the heat of passion.
They killed him and then they spent 98 minutes cleaning up the crime scene and rehearsing their lives before calling 911.
The evidence will show you that David Mitchell was struck four times with an 8-PB marble lamp.
The evidence will show you that the final blow was delivered to the back of his head while he was already incapacitated.
The evidence will show you that Sarah Mitchell and Carlos Mendoza recorded a video practicing their story while David lay dying in the hallway.
This is not self-defense.
This is murder.
And Sarah Mitchell is guilty.
Catherine Walsh’s opening is emotional.
Focusing on Sarah as victim.
Sarah Mitchell made mistakes.
She will be the first to admit that she should not have had an affair.
She should not have married David when she had doubts.
But making mistakes is not the same as committing murder.
The evidence will show you that Carlos Mendoza is a predator who has targeted vulnerable women for years.
The evidence will show you that he stalked Sarah for months before she ever arrived at that resort.
The evidence will show you that he manipulated her, isolated her, and when David Mitchell discovered what was happening and became violent, Carlos Mendoza killed him.
Not Sarah.
Carlos.
Sarah was in shock.
She was traumatized.
She did what Carlos told her to do because she was terrified.
And now Carlos Mendoza is free while Sarah Mitchell sits in jail for a crime he committed.
The trial lasts 11 weeks.
Prosecution presents 87 pieces of evidence.
The rehearsal video played in court six times.
Every time it plays, Sarah cries.
The jury watches her cry.
Some jurors cry, too.
Others look disgusted.
The audio recording from room 714 played in full.
The jury hears Sarah and Carlos having sex.
They hear Sarah say, “I told him, I want a divorce.
” They hear Carlos say, “I’ve done this before.
” The crime scene photos, David’s body, the blood, the lamp, the jury sees everything.
Raone Herrera’s testimony about the wounds.
He uses a model skull to demonstrate the four impact sites.
He explains that the first blow to the right temple would have been disorienting.
The second blow to the right parietal bone would have caused loss of consciousness.
The third blow to the back of the skull was unnecessary.
David was already down.
The fourth blow to the left parietal bone was overkill.
The prosecution asks, “In your expert opinion, was this self-defense?”
Herrera, no.
The pattern of injuries suggests continued assault after the victim was no longer a threat.
The Paraso plan document from Carlos’s laptop.
The timeline, the escalation strategy, the line, “If she won’t leave him, he has to go.
” Sarah’s Instagram posts and Carlos’s saved screenshots shown side by side.
The prosecution argues this proves premeditation.
Carlos was planning this for months.
the 98-minute gap between the incident and the 911 call.
The prosecution brings in forensic psychologist
Alan Chun, no relation to Sarah, who testifies.
A person in genuine shock and fear for their life calls for help immediately.
They don’t wait 98 minutes.
They don’t rehearse their story.
These actions indicate consciousness of guilt.
Text messages recovered from Sarah’s phone.
Deleted but retrieved through carrier records.
May 13th, 217 p.
m.
I wish I’d never married him.
Sent to a Mexican number later confirmed as Carlos’s burner phone.
Defense presents 43 pieces of evidence.
Carlos Mendoza’s employment history showing he was fired or forced to resign from three resorts for inappropriate conduct.
The defense argues this establishes a pattern of predatory behavior.
Testimony from the two women who signed NDAs in 2014 and 2016.
Monica and Sophie both testify that Carlos pursued them aggressively, made them feel special, then turned manipulative when they tried to end things.
Monica testifies, “He made me believe he loved me.
Then when I wanted to leave my fiance for him, he threatened me.
He said if I told anyone about us, he’d say I forced myself on him.
” Testimony from
Lisa Tran, psychologist specializing in coercive control and trauma bonding.
She testifies Sarah exhibits classic signs of being victimized by a sophisticated manipulator.
The rehearsal video, which the prosecution presents as evidence of guilt, I see as evidence of control.
Carlos was directing her, coaching her, using her traumatized state to shape her behavior.
Character witnesses for Sarah, her best friend Emily.
Sarah is the kindest person I know.
She would never hurt anyone.
She was terrified of Carlos after David died.
Her mother, Linda.
My daughter is not a murderer.
She was manipulated by a predator.
The laptop folder with 47 videos of other women.
The defense argues this proves Carlos has done this before, targeted women, manipulated them, possibly harmed their partners.
Though the content of the other videos isn’t shown in court, many are consensual intimate recordings.
The existence of the folder establishes pattern.
And finally, Sarah’s own testimony.
She takes the stand on February 14th, 2024, Valentine’s Day.
The irony is not lost on anyone.
She testifies for 2 days.
Admits the affair.
Admits telling David she wanted a divorce.
admits going to Carlos’s room that night, but she denies planning David’s murder.
I never wanted David dead.
I just wanted to be free from a marriage I shouldn’t have entered.
When David showed up at Carlos’s door, I was scared.
David was angry in a way I’d never seen before.
He grabbed my face so hard I thought he’d break my jaw.
Carlos got between us to protect me.
David picked up the lamp.
He swung it at Carlos.
They fought over it.
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