Florida Woman Claims Boyfriend Died In Zipped Suitcase While Playing Hide-And-Seek

Sarah Boone has been charged with second-degree murder in the death of Jorge Torres Jr.

February 28, 2020

Sarah Boone [Orange County Sheriff's Office]

Sarah Boone [Orange County Sheriff's Office]

By: Aaron Rasmussen

The Orange County Sheriff’s Office charged a Florida woman with second-degree murder after she allegedly zipped her boyfriend up in a suitcase and left him there to die during a drunken game gone wrong.

According to an arrest affidavit, Sarah Boone, 42, called police around 1 p.m. on Feb. 24. Deputies responding to the couple’s Winter Park apartment found Jorge Torres Jr. dead, the Orlando Sentinel reported.

An autopsy detailed the 42-year-old man’s multiple injuries, including a lip laceration, bruising around one eye and scratches on his back and neck.

Boone claimed she and Torres had been drinking chardonnay, putting together puzzles and painting pictures the night before when they decided to play hide-and-seek.

Boone said she started the game by hiding in a shower and then the two “thought it would be funny” if she enclosed him in the suitcase, the affidavit reads.

Boone told law enforcement Torres could stick two fingers out from the suitcase, and she eventually went to bed around 12:30 a.m. Monday night. When she went back downstairs the following day, she “freaked out” because she realized her boyfriend might not have escaped the suitcase, she claimed.

The Orange County Sheriff’s Office said Boone gave officers consent to search her cellphone. They discovered two videos recorded shortly after 11 Sunday night showing Boone taunting Torres and telling him to “shut up” as he yelled for help and complained he couldn’t breathe, Orlando’s WKMG-TV reported.

Investigators claimed Boone’s responses included: “Yeah, that’s what you do when you choke me” and “Oh, that’s what I feel like when you cheat on me.”

Boone alleged to authorities she didn’t recall shooting the videos and “began to blame the consumption of alcohol” for what happened, according to the affidavit.

The couple’s neighbor, Elijah Walker, told News 13 Boone and Torres had a troubled relationship.

"The walls here are very thin. You can hear them yelling, shouting, slamming things around," he said. "They definitely had a violent history from what I can tell and hear through the walls."

Boone is currently being held without bail. She faces life behind bars if convicted of second-degree murder.

Read more: The Washington Post

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