Murder accused asked smartphone where to bury body
Pedro Bravo, 20, from Florida, in the US, is on trial for the murder of Christian Aguilar. Bravo is accused of kidnapping and strangling his friend following an argument about Aguilar allegedly dating Bravo’s former girlfriend.
Evidence presented in court showed Bravo had a conversation with ‘Siri’ on his iPhone on September 20, 2012, and told the phone, “I need to hide my roommate.”
Siri is an intelligent personal assistant and knowledge navigator which works as an application for Apple operating system.
Siri then reportedly responded with: “What kind of place are you looking for? Swamps, reservoirs, foundries, dumps.”
Evidence presented at the trial apparently found that the suspect’s flashlight on the mobile phone was on nine times and used over 48 minutes.
Police have said Bravo was using the phone’s flashlight function to hide the body in the woods.
They also say location data gathered from the smartphone does not fit with Bravo’s account of his movements that evening.
Bravo faces seven charges including first-degree murder, poisoning, and mishandling human remains, in the death of Aguilar in September 2012.
Aguilar’s remains were discovered in a shallow grave by hunters in a nearby forest. Prosecutors allege that Bravo strangled and dumped Aguilar in the woods.
Bravo told authorities he and Aguilar got into an argument after buying a Kanye West CD but that he “beaten his friend, not killed him.”
He is accused of drugging and strangling his former roommate inside his SUV in a Walmart parking lot then partially burying his body in a remote wooded area.
Prosecutors revealed photos of a cracked windshield covered in duct tape and blood stains on the SUV’s seats, along with a blood-stained paint can and shoes — signs of a violent struggle, authorities said. Another image showed a mud-caked shovel found behind Bravo’s Gainesville apartment, which prosecutors say was possibly used by Bravo to bury his victim.
Surveillance footage shows Bravo buying a shovel, duct tape, bandages and sleep aids the night before Aguilar went missing.
Prosecutors claim that Aguilar’s death was the result of his relationship with Friman. Friman dated Bravo in high school, but after Friman entered college, she began dating Aguilar. She testified, saying she hid the relationship from Bravo.
“I lied to him because he was at a very sensitive point in his life, I supposed,” she said in court yesterday. “I didn’t want to throw him over the edge and say, ‘By the way, I’m dating a mutual friend of ours’.”
A focal point for the trial has been Bravo’s sketch pad, which authorities say was filled with hate-fueled messages. The trial is set to conclude next week.
