Florida students accused of fatal machete attack on teen
MIAMI - Four students allegedly confessed to murdering a fellow student by slashing him with a machete then burying him in a wooded area.
According to the arrest report for 18-year-old Desiray Strickland, the teens concocted a plan to kill Jose Amaya Guardado, 17, two weeks before the murder. Strickland's three co-defendants, who police say provided videotaped confessions, told police all four of the suspects dug a grave and on June 28, 2015, lured Guardado to the woods, then attacked him with a machete they had stashed at the scene.
At one point, according to the arrest report, Strickland complained that she missed the first round of machete strikes because she left the murder scene to urinate.
Guardado was allegedly "ordered to lay in the grave" and "made one last attempt to fight off the attacker, at which time co-defendant (Kaheem Arbelo, 20) struck the victim with the machete several more times until the victim's face caved in."
The teens the allegedly pushed Guardado into the grave, buried him, and burned his belongings and their blood-covered clothing.
Finally, according to the arrest report, Strickland and Arbelo had sex in the woods "until it was time to return to campus."
Strickland has been charged with first-degree murder. The three other defendants, including Jonathan Lucas, 18, and Cristian Colon, 19, have also been charged, but the specific charges have not yet been released.
The Miami Herald reports that the group may have targeted Guardado over a debt he owned Arbelo.
Guardado was reported missing on June 28 and his body was discovered by his family on July 1.
