NEWS CONFERENCE TODAY REGARDING CARY MURDER INVESTIGATION

WHAT:           The Town of Cary Police Department will hold a news conference to update the media on important developments in the Chavez murder case.

WHEN:          4:30 p.m. today, August 23, 2004

WHERE:        Police training room, 2^nd floor of  120 Wilkinson Avenue on the Town Hall campus

WHO:             Town of  Cary police and coordinating agencies

DIRECTIONS: 

Cary’s Town Hall complex is located at the 300 block of  North Academy Street —between  Chatham Street and  Chapel Hill Road—in downtown Cary.  120 Wilkinson is the newest building on campus and is located directly across from the parking deck.  Media should park in the visitors spaces on the east side of the building; please do not park in the police lot.  Enter the building on the east side, turn right, and take the elevator on your left just past the stairs to the third floor.  

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INVESTIGATION INTO CARY HOMICIDE CONTINUES TODAY

CARY, NC – Officials continue their investigation of yesterday’s stabbing of Karla Patricia Chavez, 21, of 427  Hastings Place in  Cary. Chavez’s body was transported to the North Carolina Medical Examiner’s Office in Chapel Hill last night for an autopsy that was to take place today.  Cary Police have not received the autopsy report at this time.

Victim - Karla Patricia Chavez	Person of Interest - Maria Nora Mena

Cary Police continue to want to question Maria Nora Mena, 29, of 604 Cedar Street in Cary, who is believed to have important information about what happened in the early hours of August 21 when Chavez was killed.     

Mena is about 5’1” tall, 110 lbs., and possibly traveling in a black Toyota Tacoma pickup truck.  Mena, or anyone with information on her whereabouts, is strongly encouraged to contact Cary Police immediately.

Cary Police were called to the wooded area where the dead woman lay at 4:13 p.m. by a citizen at  213 Wrenn Drive .  Officials returned to the scene today to continue to look for evidence and leads.

Cary Crime Stoppers will pay up to $2,500 for information leading to the identification and apprehension of the individual(s) responsible for this crime.  Anyone with information may contact Crime Stoppers at 226-CRIM(E), pressing option 3 for Cary or contact Captain Kenny Williams, Criminal Investigations, at (919) 469-4017.  All calls will be kept CONFIDENTIAL at caller's request.

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  CARY POLICE RELEASE PHOTO OF PERSON OF INTEREST WANTED FOR QUESTIONING IN CARY  DEATH INVESTIGATION

Cary Police want to question Maria Nora Mena in their investigation of the murder of Karla Patricia Chavez, 21, of 427 Hastings Place in Cary .  She was discovered dead Saturday afternoon in a lightly wooded area behind Cardinal Woods Apartments in central Cary .   

Mena is about 5’1” tall, 110 lbs., and possibly traveling in a black Toyota Tacoma pickup truck.  

Maria Nora Mena, 29, of  604 Cedar Street in Cary.
  

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PERSON OF INTEREST WANTED FOR QUESTIONING IN CARY DEATH INVESTIGATION  

CARY, NC – The Town of Cary Police Department wants to question a Cary resident in the stabbing death of a woman found earlier today behind an apartment complex near the heart of downtown.  Cary Police are looking for Maria Nora Mena, 29, of 604 Cedar Street in Cary .  She is described as about 5’1” tall, 110 lbs., and possibly traveling in a black Toyota Tacoma pickup truck.  The victim in this case is Karla Patricia Chavez, 21, of 427 Hastings Place in Cary .  She was discovered dead this afternoon in a lightly wooded area behind Cardinal Woods Apartments in central Cary .   

Police were called to the scene at 4:13 p.m. by a citizen at 213 Wrenn Drive who reported seeing a woman lying in the woods immediately behind the apartments.  Cary Police arrived shortly thereafter, secured the scene, and contacted CCBI to gather evidence. 

Officials remain at the scene this evening. 

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WOMAN FOUND DEAD BEHIND CARY APARTMENTS

CARY , NC – The Town of  Cary Police Department is investigating the suspicious death of a Hispanic woman this afternoon. The woman was found dead in a lightly wooded area behind Cardinal Woods Apartments in central Cary .  At this time, police are treating her death as a homicide.

Police were called to the scene at  4:13 p.m. by a citizen at 213 Wrenn Drive who reported seeing a woman lying in the woods immediately behind the apartments.  Cary Police arrived shortly thereafter, secured the scene, and contacted CCBI to gather evidence.

The woman has not yet been positively identified.  Officials remain at the scene this evening.  

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MEDIA NOTE: A MEDIA STAGING AREA HAS BEEN ESTABLISHED AT THE 300 BLOCK OF  WRENN DRIVE .  FOR NOW, INTERVIEWS ARE BEING CONDUCTED AT THE SCENE.