Queens Mother Seraphina Pereira Found in Shallow Grave in New York City, New York; Boyfriend Charged With Murder

A man described in reports as the boyfriend of Seraphina Pereira has been charged with murder after the 35-year-old Queens mother was found buried in a shallow grave at Rockaway Community Park in Edgemere, according to reports published on Tuesday, Oct. 27. The reports said the man was arrested on Monday night and charged with murder, concealment of a body and possession of a weapon. The charges are the first formal charges in a case that began when Pereira was reported missing last week.

Police found Pereira on Saturday night, Oct. 24, at about 9:45 p.m., wrapped in a blanket in a shallow hole on the Jamaica Bay shoreline side of Rockaway Community Park, the New York Post reported. Her remains were already decomposing when officers reached the scene, according to law enforcement sources cited by the Post. The park sits about half a mile from the Beach 54th Street home she was last seen leaving, and officers searched the shoreline area through the night.

Last seen on Oct. 19

Pereira was last seen at about 11 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 19, leaving her home on Beach 54th Street, police said. When she did not come back, her family searched for her themselves. Her sister Davonna Gray, 41, travelled from Albany to join the search, according to reports of her remarks to the Daily News on Monday. Gray said: "We were determined to find her. We went directly to the beach with a flashlight, she loved the beach, only to get this crazy news. It's hard. Who could kill a mother?"

Medical examiner ruled the death a homicide

The city medical examiner ruled Pereira's death a homicide on Monday, Oct. 26. The Post reported that she had been shot in the head, neck and torso. Police announced on Monday evening that a person of interest was in custody, and CBS New York reported the same custody step that night. At that point no charges had been filed, the Post said.

Pereira was a mother of four. In the days before she disappeared, she had posted a birthday message for her son, who had just turned five, and about a week earlier she had shared a selfie with her daughter, the Post reported. Her last posts were about her children, and her family had been sharing a missing person appeal with her photograph while the search went on.

What is not yet known

Police have not said what led to the shooting, where Pereira was killed, or when the case will first be heard in court. A charge is an allegation, and a person charged is presumed innocent unless proven guilty. Detectives are still investigating, and anyone with information about Pereira's movements after Oct. 19 is asked to contact NYPD Crime Stoppers.