Married Cop now the Prime Suspect in Student Lover's murder

(Columbia, Missouri) A married Columbia police officer who was having a secret affair with a gay college student is now the prime in his murder.

The body of 23 year old Jesse Valencia was discovered June 6 on the lawn of a home about a block from his apartment near the campus of the University of Missouri-Columbia._ An autopsy showed that his throat had been slashed. (story)

The last time anyone saw him was about 3:30 the previous morning as he left a party off campus.

Shortly after the investigation into the killing began friends of Valencia said he was having a secret affair with a police officer. The friends told homicide investigators that the officer had arrested Valencia on April 18 for interfering with officers responding to a peace disturbance in the area. The friends said the officer then started visiting Valencia’s apartment.

That officer was later identified Valencia's arrest report as Steven Rios.

Last week, investigators said they had ruled out Rios as a suspect. Now he is the prime suspect and this week, police armed with a search warrant searched Rios' home._

In an affidavit submitted to the court by Columbia police Detective Jeff Nichols, the investigator said he had reason to believe evidence of the homicide was "concealed" at Rios' house.

Investigators searched for any trace evidence, including blood, hair and fibers. But their main target was a clip-on style knife with a folding blade witnesses told investigators Rios commonly carried. No knife was listed on an inventory of items seized._

The inventory of items seized includes contents of his shower drain and trap, two pairs of khaki shorts, contents of another bathroom drain, a pair of black sandals and a gray Missouri State Highway Patrol uniform shirt.

Rios, meanwhile, has been confined to a state mental health facility for his own protection after twice threatening to commit suicide after his affair was made public.

The night of the murder the 27 year old Rios worked that morning until 3 a.m. Part of his beat included the campus area where Valencia's body was found.

Police say they are continuing the investigation but have not yet charged Rios with the killing.

http://www.365gay.com/newscon04/06/0...legeMurder.htm

Such a sad story. I think a lot of us know from personal experience how dangerous it is to get involved with married men who identify as "straight". Not because you could wind up dead, necessarily, but because situations like that never end up well. Regardless of what happens, it gets ugly.

I totally agree with you on that Jasun! It's never a pretty end to a situation when you get involved with a married man. Been there once, and will never go there again.

I just hope that they find the killer, whether it is this man or not.

GA

i read articles about people who kill their lovers or ex's and i really have to wonder about us as a people. i remember this one lesbian couple recently where one woman was trying to kill her girlfriend's husband for insurance money. and i certainly have read about people who kill almost as a breakup method.

you can find a new job, a new boyfriend/girlfriend, a new apartment - no matter what a relationship costs you, it won't be as irreplaceable as that other person's life.

not only that, but what is up with these men who KNOW that they'd rather die than have their wife/parents/job find out they're gay? if you'd rather or die or kill to protect this info, why not simply NOT FUCK ANOTHER MAN OR WOMAN? that way, no one will know for sure.

Man, it just gets weirder. I mean, we've all had that moment of horror when we realize that somebody we dont' wanna know a decret about us has found us out, but the sheer desperation required to resort to killing a lover/sex partner must be astounding. I mean, as horrible as the guy is for doing what he did, I can only imagine the hell he was in that he thought that was his only option.

Quote:

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Originally posted by Jasun
Man, it just gets weirder. I mean, we've all had that moment of horror when we realize that somebody we dont' wanna know a decret about us has found us out, but the sheer desperation required to resort to killing a lover/sex partner must be astounding. I mean, as horrible as the guy is for doing what he did, I can only imagine the hell he was in that he thought that was his only option.

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That's where tt get's me too. That murder is the only option? Where does the mind go to get to that point?

Now I've known many young men who have contemplated suicide because of their confusion about their sexuality. Does murder come from the same dark place? It just astounds me.

GA

You know considering this guy got suspended with full pay for 'not being a suspect' it strikes me as slightly strange why all of a sudden they have decided he has become a suspect.

What evidence have they actually collected to support him being prime suspect, they havent found the murder weapon, and they appear to have collected from this officers home any potential evidence where DNA may be found yet still nothing solid has been said as to why they think he killed the guy.

Regards,

Lee

I'm thinking that although they DID suspect him, they didn't want to slander him and make his life any harder than it had become.

From their perspective, he'd already lost almost everything. He had been outed in the press, he had most likely lost his wife, and probably the custody of his children, he'd had the guy he was having an affair with die. That would be a lot for a guy to go through in a week. And he was their friend. Before they actually did have any evidence, they probably decided to tell people they didn't suspect him just in case he wasn't involved. He's already been threatening suicide, so they just didn't want to push him over the edge. But yeah, I'm wondering what we didn't hear that they did that makes them think he's involved.

Jesse was a social friend of mine, and it wasn't really a huge secret what him and the cop were doing. Rios was harassing him, and I think Jesse either told Mr Rios that he was going to out him to his wife if he didn't stop, or Rios did this to prevent that from happening without provocation. Either way it's fucked up horrible shit, and I "preach" at the young guys in Columbia all the time about getting involved with married men, and at married men for "preying" on younger gay men behind their wives backs. It all pisses me off. Jesse should have known better, everyone should. I am deeply upset and disturbed by what happened to him and can only pray that it serves as an example to his generation that life can be over in a second, and the wrong choices can last forever. I know younger gay men around here will be looking over their shoulders a LOT more now. I know way too many around here already who have been raped through gay.com and the local bars, by older men with the mentality of "They aren't out to their family so they won't tell, that would be outting themselves." Thank God for PFLAG and other local efforts that keep chipping away at social and in home mentalities that lead to these kind of things!

Out of curiousity I asked in the Columbia room how many of them had slept with a married man, and almost all said they had! What the hell is wrong with people?!