Woman’s stabbing death in Patillas could be island’s 9th femicide of the year

Authorities were investigating the violent death of a 64-year-old woman in Patillas in a case that, if confirmed to have occurred in a context of intimate partner violence, would become the ninth intimate femicide recorded in Puerto Rico so far in 2026.

By THE STAR STAFF

Authorities on Tuesday were investigating the violent death of a 64-year-old woman in Patillas in a case that, if confirmed to have occurred in a context of intimate partner violence, would become the ninth intimate femicide recorded in Puerto Rico so far in 2026.

The victim was identified by the Police Bureau as Hilda Milagros Meléndez Morales, 64.

Hilda Milagros Meléndez Morales was found dead with a stab wound in a residence. A 60-year-old man was also found dead at the scene who, according to the police, took his own life.

According to preliminary information from the authorities, at about 6:42 p.m. on Monday, a call was received in the district of Patillas alerting that people who were inside a residence were not responding.

The events were reported in a house located on the PR-3 highway, at the height of the San Martín urbanization.

Upon entering the residence, agents found Meléndez Morales’ body in a room. The woman had a stab wound.

In the bathroom of the house, the body of Raúl Gely Rodríguez was also found, who, according to preliminary information provided by the police, had taken his own life.

As of press time, the authorities had not publicly specified what the relationship between Meléndez Morales and Rodríguez was or the circumstances that preceded the deaths. That data will be decisive in establishing whether the case corresponds to an intimate femicide.

While the Patillas case was being investigated, authorities were also investigating the violent death of a woman whose body was found shot during the early hours of Tuesday morning on the side of a road in San Germán.

According to the police report, a call to the barracks at about 2 a.m. alerted agents about gunshots on the PR-102 highway, kilometer 36.3, in the Minillas neighborhood in front of the old Villa Chelín.

Upon arriving at the scene, the agents found the woman’s body on the side of the road with gunshot wounds. State paramedics confirmed that she had no vital signs.

Officers responding to the scene found Melanie Rivera Avilés, a resident of San Germán, by the side of the road with multiple gunshot wounds, according to the preliminary investigation. Authorities stated that state paramedics arrived at the scene and pronounced the woman dead.

The report indicates that, as of early Tuesday, no arrests had been made in connection with the killing.

As of Monday, police statistics showed 24 women slain in Puerto Rico so far this year, six fewer than the 30 recorded by the same date in 2025.

The cases classified as intimate femicides are as follows: Alexandra Carrero Vega, in Aguadilla; Ignacia Santiago Labrador, in Vega Baja; Lourdes Pilar Santiago Reyes, in Bayamón; Ana Delia Ocaña Rodríguez, in Hatillo; Kenya Enid Morales Dávila, in Guayama; Jessica Morales Hernández, in Mayagüez; Kimberly Cruz Pacheco, in Cabo Rojo; and Gemillies Lozada Navarro, in Carolina.

The death of Jennifer M. Torres Castro, 36, which occurred in June in Caguas, was classified as a non-intimate femicide, so it is not part of the eight cases used for the count.

Meanwhile, Justice Secretary Lourdes Gómez Torres reported that the Ponce Prosecutor’s Office filed criminal charges on Monday against Xavier González Vez for sexually assaulting a woman in the municipality of Guánica.

Prosecutor Natasha Muñoz Bermastín, assigned to the Specialized Unit for Domestic Violence, Sexual Offenses and Child Abuse, filed two charges for sexual assault, under Article 130 of the Puerto Rico Penal Code.

According to the investigation, the victim was exercising on August 22 on PR-332, in the Fuig neighborhood of Guánica, when the accused approached her and sexually assaulted her.

Judge Ginny Vélez Carreras of the Ponce Court of First Instance found probable cause for arrest on the charges presented by the prosecution and imposed a total bail of $400,000. The defendant did not post bail, so he was remanded to prison.