Authorities are looking for a Florida man who murdered his girlfriend while the two visited relatives for Christmas in North Carolina.
Police say 28-year-old Jorge Maya Gomez shot his girlfriend, 28-year-old Jessica Cortez Luna, in front of her 7-year-old son. In Durham, North Carolina, her body was discovered after a 911 call came in reporting an assault early Saturday.
Luna, a mother of four, and Gomez had been together for five years. The couple relocated to Tampa, Florida but were visiting relatives in Durham when the woman was killed. According to Luna’s sister, Maria Cortez Luna, their relationship was riddled with physical and verbal abuse leading up to the murder.
“My heart is pretty broken. We kind of thought this was going to happen one day, but she kept on going back to him all the time, and we couldn’t do anything. I wish we could have done more,” Maria Cortez Luna told WRAL.
Maria Cortez saw her sister around 6:00 p.m. on Christmas. She says that Gomez appeared drunk and belligerent. That was the last time that she would see her sister alive.
“I want to let other women know that are going through this domestic violence to say something before this happens,” Maria Cortez Luna pleaded. “Nobody wants for this to happen.”
Gomez is still on the run and is considered armed and dangerous. He was last seen fleeing the home where Luna’s body was discovered in a black 2016 Chevrolet 1500 Silverado truck. As of Monday, he has not been apprehended.
Luna’s family has established a GoFundMe to assist with her funeral costs.
