NEW YORK CITY — The FedEx driver charged in connection with the murder of a Manhattan woman who vanished while jogging near her mom’s Massachusetts home last summer was linked to the crime through DNA found on her hands, according to reports.
Angelo Colon-Ortiz, 31, was ordered held on $10 million at his arraignment on charges of aggravated assault, battery and assault with attempt to rape in connection with the August death of Vanessa Marcotte, 27, who worked at Google’s Manhattan office, according to NBC New York.
Marcotte disappeared just days after Karina Vetrano, 30, was strangled and sexually assaulted in Howard Beach. The NYPD said at the time that it was in communication with Massachusetts police about the crimes.
Colon-Ortiz pleaded not guilty to the charges at his arraignment in Leominster District Court.
The DNA on Marcotte’s hands was likely left as she fought for her life, reports said.
Her body was found in the woods in Princeton, Massachusetts, about 40 miles west of Boston, according to NBC.
A witness spotted a man whom prosecutors insist was Colon-Ortiz holding a phone and standing next to a dark SUV with its hood up around 12:45 p.m. that same day, according to reports.
A state trooper recently spotted a similar SUV with a driver who matched the suspect description, then made note of the license plate number, according to NBC.
He then stopped by Colon-Ortiz’s home and left a business card. When Colon-Ortiz didn’t respond, the trooper came back and got him to consent to a DNA sample, prosecutors said, according to NBC.
That sample matched the DNA found on Marcotte.
His lawyer, Edward Ryan, said he was skeptical about whether Colon-Ortiz consented to it.
Prosecutors have been in contact with immigration officials about whether Colon-Ortiz is in the country legally, though Ryan insisted that he is, according to NBC.