A Florida man has been accused of stabbing a woman to death over an argument about cleaning, before forcing her boyfriend to dress up in her wig to bury her body. 

Arnaldo Cintron, 42, has been charged with killing mother-of-two Hiojaira Velez Bonilla, 42, at her home in Riverview, close to Tampa, on August 15. 

Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office said they arrested Cintron two days later, along with the victim’s own cousin, Giselle Santiago Bonilla, 37. 

Santiago Bonilla is also the girlfriend of Cintron. Together they are accused of helping dispose of a human body, and tampering with a witness. 

The witness in question was the victim’s own boyfriend, Elga Davis II, who reported the alleged murder to police and said he was forced to help dispose of Bonilla’s body, according to People magazine. 

The horror unfolded during the early hours of August 15, in the home on Maybrook Avenue where Velez Bonilla was living with her cousin and two teenage sons, and where Cintron often stayed over. 

Cintron began quarrelling with Velez Bonilla about helping with bills and chores just after midnight, according to court documents seen by the Tampa Bay Times. 

During the argument, Cintron flipped out and fatally stabbed Velez Bonilla several times in the upper torso while calling her a ‘b****’, authorities have said. 

A Florida man has been accused of fatally stabbing Hiojaira Velez Bonilla (pictured) over an argument about cleaning, before forcing her boyfriend to dress up in her wig to bury her body

Davis was in the living room at the time, and he walked into the kitchen during the bloody attack. 

Still armed with a knife, Cintron then cornered Davis with the help of Santiago Bonilla. 

He allegedly told Davis he would kill him, along with his family and Velez Bonilla’s sons, if he ‘talked to anyone’ about the crime, or refused to help clean up her blood. 

According to the arrest affidavit, he ‘threatened’ Davis, telling him ‘I don’t like witnesses’, and demanded he hand over his cell phone. 

Davis said he was forced to place his girlfriend’s dead body inside a cardboard box before loading it into the trunk of her Nissan Rogue. 

Cintron also ordered him to clean her blood from the floor using bleach and Clorox wipes. 

According to legal documents seen by the Tampa Bay Times, Santiago Bonilla willingly helped in cleaning up the murder scene and disposing of her cousin’s body. 

Davis said that Santiago Bonilla told him several times that Cintron ‘did this for’ him because Velez Bonilla was ‘evil’ and ‘deserved this for the way she treated’ Davis.

Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office said they arrested Cintron, along with the victim’s own cousin, Giselle Santiago Bonilla (pictured)

Cintron is being held without bond at Hillsborough’s Falkenberg Road Jail. Santiago Bonilla is also in custody, with her bond set at $200,000

Moments after the clean-up, Velez Bonilla’s 16-year-old son emerged from his room and asked what was going on and where his mother had gone. 

Cintron told the boy they had been cleaning a spilled drink and that his mother had ‘left to go be with another man’ according to the affidavit, and the teen returned to his room. 

The accused killer then allegedly took an unhinged turn – by ordering Davis to dress up in a long dress she owned and even wear one of her wigs. 

Several hours later, at 7.30am, Cintron told Davis to drive the Rogue carrying a trash bag full of bloody wet wipes, rags, towels, and his girlfriend’s dead body. 

The two men got into the car, and Santiago Bonilla followed them in a red Toyota Sedan to drive to the home of Cintron’s friend, called ‘Tarzan’, who allegedly agreed to help dispose of the body.

During discussions about where to leave the body, Santiago Bonilla allegedly said they should kick out her cousin’s teeth and remove her hands to make it ‘harder to identify her’. 

They eventually forced Davis to drive to the Weedon Island Preserve on the shore of Tampa Bay, where they heaved Velez Bonilla’s body beneath some mangrove trees. 

Cintron ‘told the witness to get rid of the vehicle and to ‘remember their arrangement,” according to the affidavit seen by the Tampa Bay Times.   

The horror unfolded during the early hours August 15, in the home on Maybrook Avenue (pictured) where Velez Bonilla was living with her cousin and two teenage sons

The witness explained this to mean the threats the defendant said to him after murdering the victim.’

Cintron then demanded the PIN for Velez Bonilla’s debit card, and swiped more than $30,000 from it. Davis said he refused a cut of the money.  

‘The witness advised he was in constant fear for his safety and life as well as the victim’s sixteen-year-old son and the witness’s family throughout the entire ordeal,’ the affidavit reads. 

Davis allegedly built up the courage to report the murder to the sheriff’s office in Brandon, Tampa, and showed detectives where his girlfriend’s body was hidden.   

Velez Bonilla’s family have launched a fundraising page in her memory, saying she was known as ‘Joy’ and describing her death as a ‘heartbreaking tragedy’. 

‘She was a devoted mother, daughter, sister, and friend whose life was stolen far too soon,’ the page reads. 

‘She leaves behind her two teenage sons, just 17 and 16 years old, who are now facing the unimaginable reality of life without their mom.

‘She was their rock, their safe place, and their biggest supporter. 

‘While they try to process this devastating loss, our family is stepping in to ensure they are cared for and supported.’ 

Cintron is being held without bond at Hillsborough’s Falkenberg Road Jail. Santiago Bonilla is also in custody, with her bond set at $200,000.