NEW JERSEY - A New Jersey man was charged with murder in the stabbing death of his supposed fiancée, just a day after a video posted to Facebook showed him allegedly proposing to her.
According to the Union County Prosecutor's Office, Jose Melo, 52, of Elizabeth, was charged with one count of first-degree murder, among other charges. Police said Naket Jadix Trinidad Maldonado, 31, was found dead last Monday just after 9 a.m. at a residence on Florida Street in Elizabeth.
The proposal
Footage posted on Melo’s Facebook page on December 29 showed him publicly proposing to Trinidad Maldonado at Bamboleo Night Club, according to Storyful. The post was captioned, "I love you baby."
He is seen bending down on one knee, putting a ring on her finger and embracing her as the crowd cheers and the song Casate Conmigo ("Marry Me") by Silvestre Dangond and Nicky Jam plays in the background.
Who was Naket Jadix Trinidad Maldonado?
According to a GoFundMe page created by her family, Maldonado was a mother to two daughters.
"Naky was senselessly taken from us on December 30 in an act of evil. This horrible act by someone she trusted left her two children without either parent and with very little options for their future," her family wrote on the GoFundMe page.
Anyone with information is urged to contact Prosecutor’s Office Homicide Task Force Sergeant Keyla Live at 908-370-6793, Detective Melvin Rogers at 732-259-2003 or Elizabeth Police Detective Steven Lazo at 908-570-7852.
The Source: This article uses reporting from Storyful, Melo's Facebook video and the Union County Prosecutor's Office.