Authorities in Berks County have filed charges in a triple homicide case that has shaken the community. District Attorney John Adams announced that 61-year-old Jose Rodriguez now faces three counts of first-degree murder in connection with the deaths of Geraldina Peguero-Mancebo, her one-year-old son Jeyden Junior Peguero, and her husband, Junior Cabrera-Colon.
Rodriguez was already in custody at Berks County Jail for Cabrera-Colon’s killing, which occurred earlier this month. At a news conference, Adams confirmed that Rodriguez is accused of carrying out the murders of Peguero-Mancebo and her child days later in Ontelaunee Township.
On the evening of September 19, investigators located Peguero-Mancebo’s body in a grassy field off East Huller Lane. Detectives had traced her cell phone to the remote location. Members of the Berks County Detectives, Reading Police, Northern Berks Regional Police, and the Berks County Forensic Services Unit responded to begin a death investigation.
At the time, authorities suspected the victim was Peguero-Mancebo, who had been reported missing along with her son. The following day, September 20, search teams found the body of one-year-old Jeyden in a marshy area roughly 150 yards away, reports WFMZ.
Autopsies performed at Reading Hospital confirmed that both victims died by homicide. Detectives later determined Rodriguez drove Peguero-Mancebo to the secluded location before shooting her in the back of the head. Adams said Rodriguez then carried her son to a pond nearby and threw him into the water while he was still alive. The boy died from freshwater drowning.
“This was an absolutely horrific crime,” Adams said, his voice breaking as he addressed reporters. “The child’s death in particular is beyond comprehension.” The tragedy unfolded less than a week after Cabrera-Colon’s body was discovered in brush along River Road on September 13.
Although his body was the first recovered, investigators believe he was the last of the three victims killed. He died from a gunshot wound to the head. Rodriguez was initially charged with Cabrera-Colon’s murder, claiming self-defense in statements to police.
The additional charges now place him at the center of what Adams called one of the most disturbing cases in recent memory. Adams said his office is reviewing whether to seek the death penalty against Rodriguez, though a final decision has not yet been made.
Rodriguez remains held without bail as the investigation continues. Authorities emphasized that further evidence is being gathered to build the case against him. “This community deserves justice for Geraldina, for her son Jeyden, and for Junior Cabrera-Colon,” Adams said.