Jalajhia Finklea, an 18-year-old Native American woman from the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe, was found dead on November 25, 2020, in a field off Interstate 95 in Fellsmere, Florida. The medical examiner determined that Jalajhia Finklea died from two gunshot wounds to the head, and her death was ruled a homicide. Finklea had been missing since October 20, 2020, when she was last seen in New Bedford, Massachusetts, getting into a car rented by Luis Zaragoza, a 37-year-old man who also went by the
names Luis Barboza and Luis Barbosa.
The investigation revealed that Zaragoza had kidnapped Finklea and traveled with her across several states. Finklea's cell phone was last used to call Zaragoza shortly before she got into his car, and it was later found discarded on Route 140 in New Bedford. Using phone records, police tracked Zaragoza's movements, which showed he traveled from Massachusetts to Florida, then to Texas, and back to Florida. Surveillance footage obtained during the investigation never showed Finklea after she got into Zaragoza's car.
On November 5, 2020, Zaragoza was located by U.S. Marshals in Crestview, Florida. When law enforcement attempted to arrest him on kidnapping charges related to Finklea's disappearance, Zaragoza fired at the officers and was subsequently shot and killed. The Florida Department of Law Enforcement investigated the shooting. During the investigation, police found a note on Zaragoza's phone in which he admitted to killing Finklea, stating that he had "snapped" and that "she is gone." The note also contained directions to the location where Finklea's body was later found.
Finklea's death was a significant loss to her community, and the Mashpee Wampanoag Tribe expressed their condolences and support for her family. The brutal nature of the crime and the circumstances surrounding her disappearance and death highlighted the ongoing issue of violence against Native American women. The case remains a poignant reminder of the need for continued efforts to address and prevent such tragedies.
