Luis Toledo (pictured above), 35, has been accused of murdering his wife and her two children. He confessed to killing 28-year-old Yessenia Suarez on Thursday
A husband accused of murdering his wife and two stepchildren broke down and admitted killing her in an interview with investigators.
But Luis Toledo, 35, from Deltona, Florida, claims his stepchildren, Thalia Otto, 9, and Michael Otto, 8, who he raised with wife Yessenia Suarez, were murdered by his neighbor, Tyshawn Jackson.
He alleged Jackson used an axe.
In an audio (taken October 23 2013) played to jurors Thursday, he broke down to investigators about 28-year-old Suarez, who was allegedly having an affair and sought a divorce, as he said: ‘It was an accident with my wife,’ according to ClickOrlando.com.
In the recording played Thursday he told officials: ‘I got so tired of her grabbing at me. She fell down on the floor. Looking at me.’
He said he karate-chopped her in the throat: ‘She couldn’t breathe. She’s not breathing. She’s not breathing. She died looking at me.’
The family were reported missing from their Deltona home on October 23, 2013. Their bodies have never been found.
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Yessenia Suarez, 28, was murdered by her husband Luis Toledo after a jealous rage, he confessed to investigators and said: ‘she died looking at me’
Toledo has also been accused of killing his two stepchildren Thalia Otto, 9, (L) and Michael Otto, 8, (R), however he claims his neighbor Tyshawn Jackson killed them with an axe
In an audio (taken October 23 2013) played to jurors Thursday, he broke down to investigators (pictured above) about Suarez, who was allegedly having an affair and sought a divorce, as he said: ‘It was an accident with my wife’
Toledo told officials that his marriage was spiraling out of control and how he even installed a tracking device on her phone so he could read her messages, according to WFTV9.
He claims he went to his wife’s workplace at American K9 in Lake Mary, the day before the family disappeared, so he could confront her and her coworker, who he suspected she was having an affair with. He said he became very upset when they denied it.
‘You and Kevin can have each other,’ Toledo said in the recording. ‘I left. I drove to the cemetery for a while.’
Toledo said he visited the cemetery where his parents were buried so he could reflect and think and says he returned home and slept in his car.
He said when he woke up his wife and children were gone: ‘I went into the house, like I realized that the house was empty. Nobody was there. I said damn she [Suarez] didn’t even wake me up,’ Toledo told detectives.
Tyshawn Jackson (pictured above) testified Monday and denied killing the two children
He said he karate-chopped her in the throat: ‘She couldn’t breathe. She’s not breathing. She’s not breathing. She died looking at me,’ (pictured above)
Suarez’ body (C) Michael’ body (L) and Thaila’s body were never discovered but the family was reported missing from their Deltona home on October 23 2013
The investigator asked him how the children died. He continued to argue his neighbor Jackson was to blame: ‘He hit them with an axe. With an axe.’
Jackson testified Monday that he helped Toledo move Suarez’s car to a parking lot in Seminole County, however he denied killing the children.
He told deputies that Toledo asked him to follow him to Lake Mary where Toledo allegedly dumped Suarez’ car after trying to wipe it down, reported the Orlando Sentinel.
During more of the recording played to the jury, detectives probed Toledo about his children: ‘You miss them?’ ‘Would you trade places with them?’ Toledo softly nodded.
Toledo claims he invited Jackson over to play video games. After he had ‘accidentally’ killed Suarez his stepchildren woke up and saw their mother so he asked Jackson to take the children away.
Jackson apparently took the kids into the bathroom but Toledo suddenly heard: ‘pow, pow, pow,’ which is when he followed Jackson in and claims he found him there with an axe.
He said Jackson struck the children with it: ‘He hit them with an axe. I didn’t even know what side he hit them with. There was blood everywhere.’
Despite Toledo’s claims that Jackson (pictured above testifying) killed his stepchildren prosecutors have previously stated he played no role in the actual murders
Toledo said he felt Michael’s head and he could feel pieces of his skull and that he saw Thalia in her last few moments: ‘I saw my daughter take her last breath,’ according to Wesh.
He said after the tragic ordeal Jackson disposed of the bodies. Toledo allegedly helped Jackson put Suarez’s body in the trunk of her car but Jackson carried the children himself.
Prosecutors have previously stated Jackson played no role in the actual murders.
During the recording played to the jury the detective continued to show photos of Toledo’s family to him but he merely responded: ‘Can’t stay up anymore. I need some rest.’
Toledo said his neighbor killed Thaila (L) and Michael (R) and claims he found Jackson with an axe in the bathroom: ‘There was blood everywhere,’ he said
Toledo (pictured above with an investigator) told officials that his marriage was spiraling out of control and how he even installed a tracking device on his wife’s phone so he could read her messages
He refused to answer authorities when they asked: ‘Do you know what happened to your family?’
Prosecutors said Toledo changed his story after detectives confronted him about blood being found at the family home and in Suarez’s car.
A DNA expert spoke to the jury on Tuesday claiming that Thalia Otto’s DNA was found in Suarez’ closet and on a car trunk mat which Toledo got rid of.
Felicita Perez, Suarez’s mother and the children’s grandmother, were present for the trial on Thursday as they sat there distraught listening to the recording.
Michael and Thalia’s biological father, Michael Otto, sat behind them as he dropped his heads in his hands crying.
Trial will resume Monday with a special witness from out of state being brought in.
Jurors will also hear more recordings between Toledo and detectives, as well as two forensic specialists.
Toledo and Suarez’ home pictured here – 317 Covent Gardens Pl, Deltona, Florida