A Pennsylvania man murdered his girlfriend — stabbing her multiple times “throughout her body” with a kitchen knife — after she got a new haircut that he hated, according to police.
Benjamin Garcia Gual, 49, is accused of killing 50-year-old Carmen Martinez-Silva at her brother’s mobile home in East Hempfield Township on Sunday, Nov. 3, following an alleged dispute over Martinez-Silva’s new hairdo the night before.
In his criminal complaint, obtained by Law&Crime on Thursday, authorities in Lancaster County describe how Martinez-Silva was “scared” of Gual and stayed with her daughter, Yamaris Knight, after their alleged fight.
“Yamaris stated that Carmen cut her hair, which angered Benjamin,” the complaint says. “Carmen relayed to Yamaris that Benjamin told her that he was going to stab her over her haircut.”
Martinez-Silva left her daughter’s house at around 8:21 a.m. on Nov. 3 and went to see her brother, Luis Martinez-Silva, to ask if he could go “tell Benjamin that their relationship was over” and to “get his stuff” out of the mobile home they stayed in together, per the complaint.
Police interviewed a witness who saw the incident unfold at Luis Martinez-Silva’s residence — also a mobile home — and recounted what allegedly happened.
“Benjamin came to [his home] looking for Carmen and he explained to Benjamin that Carmen was not present, attempting to protect Carmen, although she was inside the trailer,” the complaint says. “[The witness] then explained to officers that Benjamin left but minutes later came back to the scene. Luis came to the front door, at which time Benjamin started stabbing Luis.”
Gual “utilized a kitchen knife” to stab Luis Martinez-Silva and then Carmen Martinez-Silva “multiple times throughout her body,” resulting in Carmen’s death and severe injuries to Luis’ head, chest, abdomen and arm, according to police.
Carmen Martinez-Silva “attempted to pull Benjamin away from Luis, which is when Benjamin started stabbing Carmen in a backward motion,” the complaint says, noting how Gual allegedly “swung the knife” toward the witness, attempting to stab him but missing.
Another witness told cops he tried getting a gun to stop Gual, prompting the alleged killer to turn his kitchen blade on him, too.
“[The witness] said that he went to the scene attempting to help the victim’s when Benjamin swung the knife toward [his] face but missed,” the complaint says.
Authorities say 911 callers reported that Gual remained at the scene — “still standing there with knife in hand” — before eventually holing up inside a Toyota Corolla until police arrived. He was also treated for injuries, though it’s unclear how he sustained them.
“Police ordered him [Gual] out of the vehicle and located a silver kitchen knife with a black handle on the passenger seat of the vehicle with brownish red staining,” the complaint says.
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Gual was arrested by officers with the East Hempfield Township Police Department on charges of murder, attempted murder, aggravated assault and recklessly endangering another person. He is being held at the Lancaster County Prison without bail.
Martinez-Silva’s daughter, Yamaris, has described dealing with the tragedy of her mother’s death on Facebook, where she has also shared a GoFundMe page for her.
“My beautiful mother is no longer with us,” she wrote on Tuesday. “I’m sorry to those I haven’t responded to, I have no words at this time.”
“The family is devastated by this loss,” Martinez-Silva’s GoFundMe description says.
Court records show that Gual has yet to obtain a lawyer, and it’s unclear when his next court date is. Attempts to reach Martinez-Silva’s family for comment have been unsuccessful.
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