Palm Beach County Sheriff Roberto Colon.
Roberto Colon is the Florida man accused of murdering his wife, Mary Stella Gomez-Mulett, after an argument about money and then burying her body in his backyard. According to the probable cause affidavit, Colon taunted detectives as they searched his Boynton Beach house by telling them Gomez was “swimming with the fishes” and yelled at them repeatedly to “find the body.”
Colon, 66, told police he hired Gomez-Mulett to care for his elderly mother. He said in exchange for that work, he married Gomez-Mulett, 44, so she could get a green card and apply to become a U.S. citizen.
Colon was arrested on March 5 and has been charged with premeditated first-degree murder.
There have inconsistencies in how the victim’s last name has been spelled. Heavy used “Gomez-Mulett” because Boynton Beach Police used that spelling in the official report.
Here’s what you need to know:
1. Colon Accused Gomez-Mulett of Stealing Thousands of Dollars From His Mother & He Admitted Arguing With Her on February 18
Boynton Beach PoliceMary Stella Gomez-Mulett.
Gomez-Mulett was reported missing on February 20. Family members told Boynton Beach Police detectives they had not heard from Gomez-Mulett in two days. According to the probable cause affidavit, Gomez-Mulett’s children told police they spoke with their mother every day and they were fearful something had happened to her.
Detectives identified Colon as Gomez-Mulett’s legal husband and they went to his house to ask about Gomez-Mulett’s whereabouts. Colon told the officers his marriage to Gomez-Mulett had been a transaction, according to the affidavit. Colon said he hired Gomez-Mulett to take care of his mother, who suffers from dementia. Gomez-Mulett moved in with Colon’s mother in Hialeah, which is located about an hour south of Boynton Beach. Colon said as part of the arrangement, he married Gomez-Mulett to help her become a U.S. citizen.
But the business relationship took a negative turn. Colon told police he believed Gomez-Mulett had stolen thousands of dollars from his mother. He said he confronted Gomez-Mulett about his suspicions on February 18 and fired her. The affidavit described the interaction as a “dispute” based on Colon’s account. Colon claimed he then left the house for a doctor’s appointment and that Gomez-Mulett had left by the time he returned. He denied knowing where she was and during a follow-up interview four days later, denied hurting Gomez-Mulett or having any involvement in her disappearance.
2. A Friend Believes She Heard Colon Attacking Gomez-Mulett Before the Phone Call Was Disconnected & Gomez’s Bloody Purse Was Found About a Mile From Colon’s House That Day
The last time anyone heard from Gomez-Mulett was around 2 p.m. on February 18, according to the affidavit. Gomez-Mulett had been on the phone with a friend as she drove to Colon’s house. The friend told detectives that Gomez-Mulett told her she was headed to Colon’s house to return a few items because she “wanted nothing to do with him any longer.” The items included the vehicle she was driving and a purse that had been a gift from Colon’s mother.
The witness told detectives that when Gomez-Mulett arrived at the house, she heard Gomez-Mulett yell what sounded like, “No, no, no Roberto!” as well as her friend’s name. The call disconnected before she could hear anything else. The friend told the police she believed Colon may have attacked Gomez-Mulett as soon as she arrived at the house. The friend added that she called Gomez-Mulett repeatedly but that the calls went straight to voicemail. She also said she drove past Colon’s house the following day but didn’t see any sign of Gomez-Mulett.
According to the affidavit, Boynton Beach Police received a call from a “concerned citizen” later that day who had found a “bloody purse.” The purse was found about one mile from Colon’s house. It contained a “broken white rosary chain with a crucifix attached” and “paperwork related to the area of Hialeah.” Officers did not connect the purse with Gomez until February 23, when a family member provided a photo of Gomez-Mulett wearing “a very similar rosary” and carrying a “very similar purse.”
3. Detectives Found Human Blood Splattered Around Colon’s Workshop & Colon Referred to the Room as His ‘Slaughterhouse’
Boynton Beach Police detectives continued to follow up with Colon as the search for Gomez-Mulett stretched on. According to the affidavit, Colon theorized on February 23 that perhaps she had gone into hiding because “she knows she may be getting arrested for fraud or theft.”
Officers returned to Colon’s house the next day and he “consented to a search of his residence, vehicle, phone and provided DNA.” Detectives noted that Colon’s text and call history had been deleted from his phone. They noticed blood on the front door; Colon said he must have cut himself when he installed the door about a month earlier.
Investigators found a larger amount of blood in the workshop area of Colon’s house. Blood was splattered on the floor, walls, the window and the ceiling. Colon claimed he had “never noticed the blood before.” He told the officers that one of his dogs had suffered an injury about five months before and theorized that the dog may have scattered the blood around the room when the animal shook itself. Colon also told officers during this search that he had buried at least six deceased dogs in his backyard over the years.
On February 26, detectives went back to Colon’s house armed with an official search warrant after concluding that the blood in the workshop was human, not canine. According to the affidavit, Colon spoke freely with detectives during the search. He referred to the workshop as his “abattoir,” which is the French word for “slaughterhouse.” He also appeared to taunt detectives when referencing Gomez-Mulett:
Colon also told detectives that Gomez-Mulett was “swimming with the fishes and referred to Gomez-Mulett as a “piece of s*** b****.” Colon yelled to detectives “Find the body, find the body.” After leaving his house and releasing it back to Colon, he said with a smirk “well, at least you didn’t find a body at my house.”
4. A Witness Told Police Colon Fantasized About Strangling Gomez-Mulett & Burying Her in the Backyard
Palm Beach County ClerkRoberto Colon is accused of killing his wife & burying her in the backyard.
Another witness played a crucial role in solving the mystery of what had happened to Gomez. Investigators interviewed a “source of information,” who was identified only as a female, who claimed that during an argument in January, Colon had threatened to strangle her and bury her in the backyard.
The witness said she was with Colon while he was on the phone with Gomez-Mulett on multiple occasions. She said that after one of those calls, “Colon said that he would like to kill Gomez-Mulett and bury her in his backyard.”
Boynton Beach Police detectives returned to Colon’s house on March 5 and placed him under arrest for drug possession. During the previous search, investigators had found large quantities of marijuana in the house, according to the affidavit.
Investigators also had another search warrant for Colon’s backyard. They found human remains buried in the yard that were positively identified as belonging to Gomez-Mulett.
5. Colon Joked About Humpty Dumpty During His Arrest
Palm Beach County SheriffRoberto Colon is accused of killing his wife and burying her in the backyard.
Colon was observed laughing during his arrest on March 5. According to the affidavit, Colon turned to a friend when he thought officers were not listening and said, “There’s one thing they can’t do. They can’t put what’s his name, Humpty Dumpty back together again.”
Colon added, “There’s really nothing that they can take from my house, you know. It’s no use to them in prosecution. Except parts and s***.” The affidavit noted that Colon was heard laughing as he said this.
Colon has been charged with premeditated first-degree murder as well as two drug charges. Court records show he was denied bond. A public defender was assigned to represent Colon and his next court hearing was scheduled for April 5. The record also shows the judge ordered the “mental health unit do a serious review of the defendant as to why he is being held under the mental health/suicide conditions.”
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