Murder trial opens for man accused of killing ex-girlfriend on Christmas Eve (with video)

The sister of a Pasco woman killed on Christmas Eve wiped away tears Wednesday as she recalled the moment she knew something was wrong.

It was 12:29 a.m. — less than a half-hour into the holiday — and Paula Garcia was celebrating at a relative’s home when her phone rang.

Garcia recognized the caller ID as the sister of Francisco J. Munoz Quintero, the ex-boyfriend of her own sister, Luisa A Garcia Farias.

“She was crying. Her voice was shaking, screaming,” Garcia told jurors in Munoz Quintero’s murder trial.

“She told me, ‘Where was my sister? Could I go find her?’ And I asked her why she was saying that,” Garcia said. “She told me that her brother, Francisco, called her and told her that he just shot my sister.”

The two hung up, and then Pasco police were called to the house for a possible weapons complaint.

What Garcia didn’t know until later was that her younger sister had been taken to Trios Southridge Hospital in Kennewick and was pronounced dead just after midnight.

Munoz Quintero, 20, is on trial in Benton County Superior Court for allegedly shooting Garcia Farias after the 21-year-old mother gave him a ride from Mabton to Kennewick.

He is charged with second-degree murder with a gun, with the aggravating circumstances of domestic violence and that the crime had a destructive and foreseeable impact on others.

Their 22-month-old daughter was in the backseat when Garcia Farias was hit by two bullets.

Munoz Quintero then drove back to Mabton and left the toddler with his relatives before returning to the Tri-Cities. He turned himself in 19 hours later on Christmas Day after a friend told Munoz Quintero that he was all over social media for the crime.

His trial started Monday, with opening statements given Wednesday morning before prosecutors called their first witnesses.

Prosecutor Andy Miller told jurors that Garcia Farias “woke up to a full day” on Christmas Eve.

An “asset protection associate” at the Richland Walmart, she was in for a hectic shift with last-minute shoppers. She also had her own Christmas shopping to do, Miller said.

Garcia Farias took her daughter to Sunnyside so the toddler could spend the day with her father, then she went to work. Her shift ended at 9 p.m., and she returned to the Lower Valley to pick up the girl.

She agreed to drive Munoz Quintero to a friend’s apartment near North Tweedt Street and West John Day Avenue. Just before he was dropped off, Munoz Quintero tried to rekindle their relationship, but was turned down.

Miller said Munoz Quintero admitted to a friend that he had killed his “girl,” left her in the middle of the street and took off.

Munoz Quintero also called his sister in North Dakota, said he had “asked Luisa to get back with me and she wouldn’t, so I shot her in the stomach,” Miller said.

Munoz Quintero had a history of threatening to kill Garcia Farias during their on-again, off-again relationship, and finally acted on those threats, the prosecutor said.

Defense attorney Alexandria Sheridan contended that while her client’s actions may have been reckless on Christmas Eve, they were not intentional.

Jurors will hear from friends and relatives about a prior history of domestic violence, but there will be no testimony from them about what happened that night, she said.

The argument between Munoz Quintero and Garcia Farias while inside her car was verbal only, Sheridan said.

Munoz Quintero told detectives that during the argument, “Luisa grabbed for the gun and it accidentally went off. This accident happened in seconds.”

America De La Mora, 18, was taking out the trash with a neighbor about 11 p.m. when she saw a car pull onto Tweedt Street and stop. She looked down at her phone and back up, and that’s when she noticed a woman on the ground in the middle of the street as the car sped off.

The Southridge High School senior said she was hesitant at first, thinking the woman was intoxicated, but knew she had to get her out of traffic. They carried Garcia Farias to the side of the road and got a blanket for her head.

De La Mora broke down as she told jurors that they thought the woman was choking because she was gasping for air, then “her eyes rolled back, and I don’t remember anything else.”

Soledad Amaya said she was a high school freshman when she met sophomore Garcia Farias. The two would become so close they considered one another sisters.

Amaya, now 20, said she also was friends with Munoz Quintero, saw him as a younger brother and lived temporarily with his family. She introduced Garcia Farias to Munoz Quintero, and the two started dating.

Garcia Farias was about two months pregnant when Amaya said she first saw Munoz Quintero try to strangle her friend.

When a scared Garcia Farias could not remove the hands around her neck, Amaya’s brother pulled Munoz Quintero off her back and threw him on the ground, Amaya testified. Minutes later, Munoz Quintero was sitting in his car holding a gun as he told Amaya he was upset that he had hurt his girlfriend.

The couple lived together in North Dakota for some time, until they broke up last August and Garcia Farias returned to Pasco with her daughter. Munoz Quintero did not move back to the Mid-Columbia until shortly before Christmas, but he often visited.

On Oct. 28, a freaked out Garcia Farias showed up at Amaya’s home and told her friend that Munoz Quintero was strangling her. Their toddler was in the backseat.

“He was just telling her to shut up, and he was going to take her to Finley and kill her out there,” Amaya testified. She said she told Munoz Quintero to stop because he wasn’t serious, and to come inside her home.

Munoz Quintero responded by telling Amaya “to shut the f--- up before he shot me too.” He had a gun on his lap, then cocked it and started to wave it around, she said.

The two women locked themselves in the home with the toddler. About an hour later, Amaya let Munoz Quintero inside and Garcia Farias left with their daughter.

Munoz Quintero often asked Amaya if his ex-girlfriend was dating anyone. Amaya said she always told him “no,” because she didn’t want him to know the truth, when, in fact, Garcia Farias had gone on dates with other men.

Amaya, on questioning from defense attorney Scott Johnson, acknowledged that her friend always carried a gun with him, whether things were good or bad.

Testimony continues May 19 in the Benton County Justice Center.

This story was originally published May 18, 2016 at 12:00 PM with the headline "Murder trial opens for man accused of killing ex-girlfriend on Christmas Eve (with video)."