A suspect was arrested Tuesday after the brutal murder of an Uber Eats driver who was allegedly dismembered following a food delivery in what Florida authorities described as a «demonic» crime.
Oscar Adrian Solis, 30, is charged with murder while participating in a robbery in the death of Randall William Cooke, 59, according to Pasco County court records. Pasco County Sheriff Chris Nocco announced the arrest, describing the case as a «horrifying crime of passion.»
«This person, you know, we always say the word evil, but this is demonic,» Nocco said.
Cooke’s wife reported him missing on April 19, after he did not return home or answer his phone despite texting that he was on his last delivery for the night, according to a complaint filed with court on Tuesday.
Pasco County Sheriff’s Office detectives went to the site of Cooke’s last known birth and spoke with Solis’s roommate, Glenn Heil, who allowed detectives access to the video surveillance footage. A clip from 6:56 p.m. shows Cooke at the door with a delivery bag, but then cuts out after about 30 seconds.
Footage from cameras at the rear of the house showed men carrying large black garbage bags out of the house the next morning. Heil gave a detective his written consent to open trash bags, at least one of which contained «identifiable human remains,» according to the complaint.
A search warrant was obtained and unopened trash bags were sent to the medical examiner’s office to preserve possible evidence inside,” the complaint states.
Authorities found Cooke’s wallet and keys in Solis’ bedroom, according to the complaint.
Cooke’s vehicle was also found .3 miles from the home and searched. A garbage bag with bloody rags, paper towels and a time card with Solís’s name on it was found inside the car, according to the complaint.
Nocco said Tuesday that authorities have not identified a motive for the crime and that it was Solis’s father who initially ordered the food on his son’s behalf.
«It’s just one of the things you can never answer why,» Nocco said. «And that’s why I feel horrible for the family.»
An Uber spokesperson said in a statement that the company has been in close contact with the sheriff’s office throughout the course of the investigation.
“We are heartbroken by the news of this horrific crime,” the company said in a statement. «There is no reason why Mr. Cooke should not be home with his family today, and we keep his loved ones in our thoughts.»
Court records show that a judge revoked bail in Solís’ case and it does not appear that he retained an attorney.
Heil told detectives that his original lease was with Solis’s father, but he moved in with his girlfriend, and Solis had been living in the house for the past two to three months. Heil, his wife and his daughter left the house last week to stay at a hotel because they did not feel safe in the house with him, according to the complaint.
Solis was recently released from prison in Indiana and moved to Florida in January, where he did not register as a convicted felon with the county, Nocco said. Indiana court records show Solis was convicted in a burglary and burglary case in 2011.
Nocco said Tuesday that Solis had ties to the MS-13 gang and had been involved in a prison stabbing prior to his release.