Maintenance worker’s death could be tied to missing 19-year-old from South Florida

ORLANDO, Fla. – A maintenance worker who the Orange County Sheriff’s Office said had a romantic interest in a missing 19-year-old woman from South Florida has been found dead, according to investigators.

Deputies continue searching for Miya Marcano who went missing on Friday. Marcano, from Pembroke Pines, is a student at Orlando’s Valencia College. She graduated last year from Flanagan High School in Pembroke Pines.

On Monday, deputies said they found Armando Manuel Caballero, 27, apparently dead by suicide in Seminole County and that they had been looking for him to question him about Marcano’s disappearance.

“We had been actively searching for Caballero this weekend and, I want to reiterate, Miya is still missing,” said Orange County Sheriff John Mina. “Her disappearance is suspicious and our detectives and the family members obviously suspect foul play.”

Marcano was last seen at the Arden Villas Apartment Complex in Orlando, where she lived and worked in the leasing office, deputies said. Caballero also worked at the complex and, according to investigators, he would repeatedly make romantic advances, which Marcano would reject.

Investigators said Caballero used his maintenance master key to access Marcano’s unit 30 minutes before she left work. According to the sheriff’s office, the apartment was found in disarray.

During a Tuesday morning news conference, Marcano’s relative told reporters that a key fob was needed to access Marcano’s bedroom.

She said Marcano always wore two gold necklaces, one of which was found broken on the floor of her bedroom.

Marcano’s relative said other belongings were scattered around the room and there was dirt on the floor, which was unusual because Marcano always took her shoes off before entering her carpeted bedroom.

Marcano ended her work shift at 5 p.m. on Friday and was supposed to board a flight to Fort Lauderdale for a trip home, her father Maron Marcano told Local 10 News’ Terrell Forney.

Maron Marcano said that he is in communication with his daughter usually hundreds of times a day.

“To not be able to hear from her or know where she is is really breaking my heart right now,” he said, affirming that it is unusual to not hear from her for days.

Miya Marcano’s relative who spoke Tuesday described her as a happy and funny person, who always made people laugh. She said Miya was also a very straight forward person who would have let Caballero know if she wasn’t interested in him.

The family says they are hopeful that they will be able to bring Miya home safely.

Miya Marcano is described by deputies as 5 feet tall with brown hair and brown eyes.

Anyone with information on her whereabouts is asked to call 407-836-4357.