Police investigating California man for alleged assault find burnt, dismembered remains of woman his backyard

Police in California said that a man being investigated for assault with a firearm has also been charged with murdering and dismembering a woman whose remains were found in his backyard.

The family of Stephanie Fagundes reported her missing in October from Stockton, a city of about 320k people 90 miles east of San Francisco.

About a month later, police arrested a man identified as 41-year-old Albert Jr. Gonzales over a completely different incident as part of which he is accused of firing a gun at an unrelated woman.

During a search of his home on November 18, police discovered burnt partial remains that were later identified as human.

Sergeant Veronica Esquivez of the Stanislaus County Sheriff’s Department told KOVR-TV that a tipster told police that their neighbor had been burning something in their yard and that it seemed odd to them.

Esquivez said that they initially did not know if what they found were human remains or not.

Five months later, DNA analysis confirmed that the remains were those of Fagundes.

“The body was dismembered,” Esquivez explained. “It was burned. Her entire body wasn’t there. There were just bits and pieces.”

Gonzalez has been in jail since November but will face new murder charges.

Despite the arrest, police say that much of Fagundes' remains are still missing, and they are asking the public for any information that might help them recover the remains for the sake of her family.

They believe that Gonzalez did not know Fagundes but are still investigating the matter.

“It weighs heavier on you when you have people killed in these gruesome ways,” Esquivez concluded. “You just want to be able to help them a lot more.”

Here's a local news report about the horrendous incident:

Remains of Stockton woman found at Modesto homewww.youtube.com

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