In the fall of 2016, a sense of unease settled over a family in Lake Station, Indiana, when 26-year-old Aimee Giro, a part-time waitress and university student, uncharacteristically failed to show up for work. Her father, Juan Giro, grew increasingly concerned and on October 5th, he went to the home of her boyfriend, Jovanni Torres, in the 2700 block of New Hampshire Street, searching for his daughter. A foul odor and the presence of flies near the residence immediately signaled that something was terribly wrong.
Police were called to the scene and after obtaining a warrant, they made a grim discovery. Inside the home, they found Aimee Giro's partially nude and decomposing body. An autopsy would later reveal that she had died from multiple gunshot wounds to the head and lower back. Her death was officially ruled a homicide. Investigators estimated that she had likely been killed on October 1st, several days before her body was found.
The investigation quickly focused on her 31-year-old boyfriend, Jovanni Torres. It was revealed that about two weeks before her death, Torres had confided in another woman that he might kill Giro. The reason he gave was that Giro had discovered him looking at child pornography. Evidence at the scene further implicated Torres. A. 45 caliber pistol that he owned was found wrapped in a robe near Giro's body, and police noted that walls in the home appeared to have been patched to cover bullet holes.
Jovanni Torres was arrested on October 14, 2016, and charged with the murder of Aimee Giro. During his trial, the jury heard testimony about the discovery of the body and the events leading up to it. After deliberating for about three and a half hours, the jury found Jovanni Torres guilty of murder and a sentencing enhancement for using a firearm in the commission of the crime. In June 2018, he was sentenced to a total of 70 years in prison for the murder of his girlfriend.
