A man who is married faced court proceedings following the discovery of his alleged former lover’s body in a wheelie bin. Juan Francisco Toledo stands accused of killing his ex co-worker, Yajaira Castro Mendez, aged 46. The court heard that Toledo, who had a prior relationship with Mendez, purportedly committed the crime at an office in central London’s legal district, before disposing of the body in a bin.
Toledo refuted the charges of murdering Mendez and tampering with evidence by hiding and discarding her remains. Utilizing a Spanish translator, the defendant only spoke to confirm his identity, birth date, and plea of not guilty.
It was claimed in court that Mendez suffered fatal injuries inside the office block on Grays Inn Road on May 29, where she had arrived for work at 5 pm. The prosecution alleged that her body was removed from the office in a wheelie bin shortly after 8:30 pm.
Subsequently, the defendant reportedly transported the body in his car to Hampshire, where it was left. Mendez, a Colombian national residing in Ilford, east London, was reported missing to the Metropolitan Police on May 31.
The alarm was raised by Mendez’s former flatmate when she did not move to new accommodation as planned. Toledo, a 51-year-old Venezuelan national from Crystal Palace, south London, was arrested on June 4 and charged with murder.
After a search by the police, Mendez’s body was discovered in the rural Bolderwood area of Hampshire on June 7. His trial is scheduled to commence on April 20 next year.
