Miguel Gonzales-Rasalas: Man kills neighbor and places salt and crosses around her mutilated body
Warning: This article contains graphic description of crime that may trigger some readers. Discretion is advised.
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA: A North Carolina man has been arrested for viciously attacking and slashing a woman into pieces in a demonic Easter Sunday murder. Miguel Gonzales-Rasalas, 36, killed his neighbor Laura Miller, 35, inside her east Charlotte apartment complex. He then surrounded her mutilated body with salt and makeshift wooden crosses. Gonzales-Rasalas was reportedly arrested with blood and scratches on his face.
Prosecutors said in court on Tuesday, April 11, 2023, that the woman's face was lacerated “to the point it was unrecognizable,” according to Live 5 News. Gonzales-Rasalas wrapped a wire around Miller's neck several times and bound her ankles with a cable. He also burned both of her inner thighs.
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The suspect sliced Miller from her neck to her belly button and cut off her tongue, which was found in the unit’s dining room. Prosecutors said human tissue was found “scattered” throughout the apartment. Gonzales-Rasalas allegedly poured salt around Miller's body and went on to break her table and form three crosses, placing them around her. He then fled in Miller's car.
Not a random act of violence
Miller's brother reportedly found her body and called the police, who said they believe the incident was not a random act of violence. The suspect and the victim reportedly knew each other, and were described as “acquaintances.”
Gonzales-Rasalas and Miller lived in the same building and argued with each other at times, neighbors told WSOC-TV. A neighbor said Gonzales-Rasalas came to Miller’s doorstep carrying a baseball bat just three days before the murder. “He was asking Laura to open the door or else he was going to kill her,” the neighbor said. Police did not specify what kind of weapon was used by the suspect to kill Miller, but said it was not a gun.
'What kind of anger is that?'
Miller's family is now trying to deal with the devastating situation they are in. "She was a sweet little girl -- the sweetest,” Miller's uncle said, adding, "Very caring of animals -- loved animals very much."
“She must have been fighting for her life, and then she must’ve been scratching his eyes and everything,” Miller’s uncle said, adding, “We want to know why this happened -- why did he have to do this? What was the purpose of it? What kind of anger is that?”
Wingate University criminology and sociology professor Mitchell Mackinem said these types of crimes are not common. “These kinds of apparently demonic types of murders are incredibly rare,” he said. Gonzales-Rasalas, who is being held without bond, is facing a slew of charges, including murder, desecrating a body, vehicular theft, and destroying remains and concealing a death.