The boyfriend of Miss Honduras' older sister shot the two women dead in a jealous rage after his girlfriend had danced with another man, police say.
Two
bodies believed to belong to Maria Jose Alvarado, 19, and her sister
Sofia, 23, have been discovered buried near the spa where they
disappeared six days ago.
General
Ramon Sabillon, the National Police director, said Sofia's boyfriend
Plutarco Antonio Ruiz confessed and led authorities to the bodies buried
in a river bank in a mountainous area in Santa Barbara.
The boyfriend of Sofia Trinidad Alvarado (left) has now been arrested after the sisters went missing on Thursday
Aris Valentin Maldonado and Plutarco
Antonio Ruiz pictured in prison after they were detained by police.
Police said Maldonado acted as an accomplice during the killings
The
reigning Honduras beauty queen Maria Jose Alvarado (pictured left and
right) and her sister went missing just days before she was scheduled to
fly to London for the Miss World competition
They
were found near La Aguagua spa, where they had gone Thursday to
celebrate Ruiz's birthday a week before Miss Alvarado, the reigning Miss
Honduras, was due to fly to London to compete in the Miss World
competition.
The sisters, who both grew up in the area, were shot to death and appeared to have been killed the night they disappeared.
An
accomplice, Aris Maldonado, was also being held. The two said they
buried the bodies near the river so they would decompose quickly,
according to Sabillon.
He
said Ruiz allegedly shot his girlfriend, Sofia, because she was dancing
with another man. After a fierce argument, he pulled out a pistol and
fired at Sofia first, then Miss Honduras as she tried to flee.
Teresa
Munoz, the sisters' mother, told Televicentro: 'They were not very
astute about assessing the people around them. They were just friendly.
'They were taken out by people they hadn't known very long.'
She
claimed Ruiz called her the following morning, acting nervous and
claiming the young women had left the party in a car with some other
people.
National police agents arrest Plutarco
Antonio Ruiz, the boyfriend of Miss Honduras Maria Jose Alvarado's
sister. During the arrest they also seized two cars and a gun
Ruiz (second from left) has since confessed to the killings, police say. Here he is pictured during his arrest
Sabillon
said authorities were awaiting confirmation from forensic officials
that the bodies were of Miss Alvarado and her sister.
The BBC
reported Leandro Osorio, the head of the country's Bereau of Criminal
Investigation, as saying the two women's bodies had been found in
Cablotales Village, near the Aguagua River.
He said: 'We are 100 per cent sure that it's them'.
The
two disappeared on Thursday outside Honduras' northern city of Santa
Barbara after a birthday party at a local resort, only days before
Alvarado was set fly to London to compete in the Miss World competition.
During
Plutarco's arrest, police also seized a pistol and two vehicles in the
hope they will provide some clues towards what happened.
The
case has caused consternation in the notoriously violent central
American country, home to the most dangerous city on the planet.
Pictured is Maldonado being arrested
by police. He and Ruiz buried the bodies near the river so they would
decompose quickly, police said
Miss Honduras Maria Jose Alvarado, 19,
was last seen getting into a vehicle after a birthday party in her home
town of Santa Barbara, west Honduras
A group of protesters pictured
yesterday marching as they demanded Miss Alvarado be freed when it was
thought to be a instance of kidnapping
Missing beauty: Miss Alvarado was due to fly to London to compete in the Miss World competition, scheduled for tomorrow
San
Pedro Sula, just over 30 miles from Santa Barbara, is the murder
capital of the world with more than 1,200 killings a year among its
nearly one million inhabitants.
On
the night they disappeared, Sofia arrived at a party on Thursday in a
champagne-colored private car with unidentified men to pick up her
sister at 6pm.
Police say the women were last seen leaving the party in the champagne-colored car.
San
Pedro Sula's murder rate of 169 per 100,000 people far surpasses
anything in north America or much larger cities like Lagos or Sao Paulo.
Maria
Jose described herself on a Miss World website profile as an aspiring
diplomat who enjoys playing volleyball and football in her spare time.
She beat 18 contestants to win the Miss Honduras crown in April.
She missed an appointment on Sunday evening to try on the dress she hopes to win Miss World with.
Earlier this week, the women's mother Teresa de Jesus pleaded: 'Open your hearts and understand my pain.
'There
is an all-powerful God that sees everything and I hope you set them
free.' Miss World is due to kick off tomorrow, with 120 contestants
competing for the crown.
The grand finale takes place on December 14 at ExCel London in the heart of the capital's Royal Docks area.
Swiss-born
medical student Carina Tyrrell, 24, a qualified ski instructor and
competition level gymnast, is representing England.
Scotland
is represented by media and marketing student Ellie McKeating, 20, from
Glasgow. Ireland's representative is business studies student Jessica
Hayes, 20, from Cork.
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