Francisco Lara-Garcia / Photo courtesy MCSAO
Francisco Lara-Garcia, 33, of Rockville, has been sentenced to 40 years in prison for killing his ex-girlfriend more than two years ago, according to the Montgomery County State’s Attorney’s Office.
He pleaded guilty in March to first-degree murder of 20-year-old Keylin Yolibeth Chavez-Dominguez.
Her body was discovered in January 2023 under an overpass of the Intercounty Connector, according to police.
The manner of death was homicide caused by beating and strangulation, according to charging documents. Lara Garcia and Chavez-Dominguez lived together in an apartment on Braxfield Court in Rockville after their romantic relationship when he discovered her relationship with someone else.
Chavez-Dominguez was last seen or heard from on Dec. 30, 2022. Lara Garcia claimed to have no knowledge of her location. He reported her missing in January 2023. Her body was found later that month.
Keylin Yolibeth Chavez-Dominguez / Photo courtesy MCSAO
Shortly after he was notified of her death, Lara Garcia left the state and lied about where he was going, according to charging documents. He was arrested by United States Marshals in Saint Louis, Missouri on Feb. 1, 2023.
He eventually admitted that he was responsible for the murder. He said they had an argument at the apartment on Dec. 30, 2022, and he started punching her and then strangled her, according to charging documents. The next day he drove her body and threw it off a bridge along the ICC.
According to MCSAO, a roommate of theirs recalled an argument that Chavez-Dominguez and Lara Garcia had the night before she went missing, during which Chavez-Dominguez found a photo of her and Lara Garcia that he stuck sewing needles into.
In a written statement, Montgomery County State’s Attorney John McCarthy said, “We thank Montgomery County Police and the United States Marshals Service for their assistance in providing justice for the victim’s family. This defendant lied to police and Chavez Dominguez’s loved ones for nearly a month while they desperately kept hope alive that she may have been found unharmed.”
