In the early hours of April 19, 2024, a welfare check at a residence in Marshalltown, Iowa, led to a grim discovery. Inside the home, authorities found the bodies of 33-year-old Caucasian female Frances Tillie Gasca and 28-year-old Mario Murillo. Both individuals were pronounced deceased at the scene, and the investigation immediately pointed towards a double homicide. The tragic event left a community in shock and a family in mourning.
Frances, a native of Lompoc, California, had moved to Iowa years before her untimely death. Described by her sister as a loving mother to four children, she was remembered for her vibrant and talkative nature. Her sudden and violent death created a void in the lives of her loved ones, who were left to grapple with the shocking news and the daunting task of bringing her body back to her hometown.
The investigation into the deaths of Frances Gasca and Mario Murillo quickly led law enforcement to identify a suspect: 29-year-old Ilias Lasley. Authorities launched a search for Lasley, considering him armed and dangerous. The manhunt concluded the following day, on April 20, 2024, when Lasley was taken into custody without incident in Des Moines. He was subsequently charged with two counts of first-degree murder for the deaths of Gasca and Murillo.
As the legal proceedings began, a possible motive for the killings emerged. It is alleged that Lasley became upset that Frances Gasca and Mario Murillo were speaking in Spanish before he shot them. Ilias Lasley has pleaded not guilty to the charges against him. The trial has faced delays, prolonging the anguish for the families of the victims as they await justice.
