Trial to begin for Florida man accused of murdering pregnant mistress

Jury selection has begun in the case of a man accused of murdering his pregnant girlfriend after he paid her for an abortion, and she took the money while refusing to kill her preborn child.

Key Takeaways:

• 23-year-old Tania Wise was found dead alongside a Florida road in 2018. She was eight months pregnant at the time.

• Authorities say Jose Soto-Escalera shot and killed her after he gave her money to abort their child, but she didn't follow through with the abortion.

The Details:

In 2018, the body of 23-year-old Tania Wise was found on the side of a Florida road. She was over eight months pregnant at the time.

According to Law & Crime, a police investigation into her death revealed that she had been in communication with Jose Soto-Escalera. Wise had told Soto-Escalera that she was pregnant with his child, and "needed money for an abortion," threatening to tell Soto-Escalera's wife about their affair if he didn't pay her.

Wise reportedly told a friend, "If she used Jose's wife against him, she could get anything she wanted."

Police say Soto-Escalera did pay Wise $500, but she didn't use it to abort the preborn baby, instead giving the money to someone else. This angered Soto-Escalera, and he allegedly killed Wise and their preborn baby boy; his mother had named him Josiah.

According to Law & Crime, a witness told police Soto-Escalera had said he was angry that Wise had "played him," and he also asked where he could find a "dirty gun." The outlet states:

Soto-Escalera's cellphone records also revealed what prosecutors believe were incriminating Google searches hours before Wise's body was found, including searches for "dead body in woods" and "wooded area dead body," police said. The defendant also clicked on four related links from those searches, authorities added.

A DNA test confirmed that Soto-Escalera was the father of Wise's preborn baby. He has been charged with two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of second-degree murder.

A court filing Monday revealed that authorities are seeking the death penalty, as they say the crime "was especially heinous, atrocious, or cruel" and "committed in a cold, calculated, and premeditated manner."

Zoom Out:

Homicide remains a leading cause of death in pregnant women; in many cases, women are killed after refusing to abort their preborn children. It is such a major issue that health experts have called gun violence against pregnant women a "health emergency."