A pregnant teenager from Texas, who vanished before she was due to give birth, and her boyfriend have reportedly been found dead on Tuesday, in what authorities are describing as a "potential murder." Savanah Nicole Soto, 18, and her boyfriend, Matthew Guerra, 22, went missing on December 23.
The bodies of the couple were found inside a Guerra's Kia Optima outside the Colinas at Medical Apartments in San Antonio, according to Police Chief Bill McManus. Soto, who was last seen at her home in Leon Valley, was described as being in "imminent danger" or having disappeared involuntarily, according to authorities. And now Soto and her boyfriend have been found dead.
Mysterious Deaths
She was nine months pregnant but never showed up at the hospital for her scheduled induction on Saturday at 6:30 pm. "What we're looking at right now is a very, very perplexing crime scene ... Detectives right now are looking at this as a possible murder," McManus said at a press conference as Soto's grieving family wailed.
"We believe that is the missing woman and her boyfriend but we can't confirm that right now officially until the medical examiner takes a look at the bodies and makes that determination as to their identity."
McManus said that the department will collaborate with the Leon Valley Police Department to probe into her death.
McManus also said that the police lacked information about who found the vehicle and did not provide clarification on the survival of the child.
Mariana Delgado, who claims to be the sister-in-law of the deceased teenager, posted on Facebook that Soto's body was found earlier in the evening and described her condition as "bad, bad."
Delgado subsequently requested the family to be allowed to grieve. "Savanah was so, so happy because she was going to be a mommy. It breaks my heart," Soto's mother Gloria Cordova had previously told KENS5.
"Please come home. No one's going to judge you. No one is going to say anything,' Cordova said. 'I just want you to be home."
Unsolved Questions
The Leon Valley Police Department had issued a CLEAR alert on Monday for Soto, identified as a white female, standing at 5 feet 1 inch, weighing 115 pounds, with brown hair and brown eyes.
The distressed mother mentioned that her last contact with her daughter was on December 22. The concerned mother tried to reach Soto on Saturday but was unsuccessful, prompting her to check on her daughter at the apartment near San Antonio.
"I went by there and knocked and knocked and knocked and she wasn't answering," Cordova said. "We got to the hospital. They said she wasn't there."
Cordova said that Soto, who was prepared for motherhood, had completed the nursery and intended to have her mother present in the delivery room when giving birth.
"We don't even know what happened. They said it could be anything," Cordova said, adding that her daughter would never vanish like this.
The mysterious disappearance of Soto prompted a significant reaction from social media, leading to the creation of a Facebook group dedicated to finding the teenager.
Over 17,000 users joined the 'Find Savannah Soto Discussion' group, actively seeking any clues related to her disappearance. The hashtag #savannahsoto generated over seven million views on TikTok by Tuesday noon.
Social media users, in their discussions and posts, have alleged that Soto's boyfriend, Guerra, was involved in abusive behavior. They pointed to bruises and marks visible in Soto's TikTok videos as evidence supporting their claims.
A user claiming to be a neighbor of Soto and Guerra from the previous year said that they had seen the boyfriend "arguing and beating her almost every day."
"I witnessed him beating her and kicked her downstairs while she was unconscious," the unnamed person said, adding that "he kicked her body and face' and 'she needed stitches."
The person claimed that they provided testimony against Guerra, who is reported to be on probation.
In response to the accusations, Guerra's mother refuted them, saying, "I know my son, and he wouldn't do anything to hurt her."
"I know my son and his girlfriend were taken against their will because my son does what he does for money. He is not an abusive boyfriend," the mother said in a Facebook post. However, the post has since been deleted.
