A Florida jury has found a Miami man guilty of murder in the 2014 killing of an 11-year-old girl that had been made to look like a suicide.
Miguel Ruiz Lobo was convicted on first-degree murder and burglary charges Friday in the death of 11-year-old Martha Guzman.
The jury rendered the verdict after around eight hours of deliberations that began Thursday. Ruiz Lobo now faces the death penalty at sentencing.
Ruiz Lobo killed 11-year-old Guzman on June 22, 2014. Family members found the child dead inside their Little Havana apartment. At one point, Ruiz Lobo told police Guzman was suicidal. However, during the trial experts testified about how the injuries were not self-inflicted.
On Friday, Guzman’s mother, father, and sisters sat in the courtroom to hear the verdict just a few feet away from the killer. Tears came down Stefanie Rivera’s face when her former step-father was found guilty on the highest charge for killing her younger sibling.
For the past eight days of trial, the jury heard from family members, police officers, forensic analysts, and neighbors. Miami-Dade Chief Medical Examiner explained to the jury Guzman’s throat was stabbed multiple times, knife scrapes were found around her four-foot body, and her wrist was cut deep into the bone.
Nearly 10 years after her death, family members described Guzman as a joyful little girl who loved to play with her neighborhood friends and siblings. But her life was cut short during her summer vacation.
Why Ruiz Lobo killed the child is unclear, but police said he was probably upset after Guzman’s mother kicked him out of the apartment.
During closing statements on Thursday, Assistant State Attorney Laura Adams told the jury video surveillance captured the defendant entering and exiting the crime scene around the same time Guzman was killed.
Adams also highlighted how the defendant’s DNA was found under Guzman’s fingernails. Adams believes the child was trying to defend herself and scratched the defendant while fighting for her life.
Ruiz Lobo’s attorney, Steven Neal Yermish, said his client was innocent. During his closing statements, he argued the security footage did not capture a clear image of the man’s face. He also attacked the police investigation for the lack of evidence.
The State Attorney’s Office got the verdict they desired, but now they hope Ruiz Lobo is sentenced to death. On April 20, the defendant will have what’s called a separate sentencing proceeding to determine whether he should be sentenced to death or spend the rest of his life in prison.
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