‘I slit her throat with glass:’ Texan man charged with murder of ex-wife, 37, during Las Vegas outing: Victim’s three children who also vacationed unable to attend funeral due to ‘jurisdiction issues’
- Nydia Lopez-Garcia, 37, was found dead in a room at the MGM Hotel on the Las Vegas Strip on May 28
- Fernando Gomez, 42, her ex-husband whom she divorced last year was arrested and charged with murdering her
The children of a Texas mother allegedly killed by her ex-husband during a weekend getaway in Las Vegas are unable to attend her funeral due to “jurisdictional issues.”
Nydia Lopez-Garcia, 37, was found dead on May 28 in a room at the MGM Hotel on the Las Vegas Strip. Fernando Gomez, 42, her ex-husband whom she divorced last year, was arrested and charged with murdering her.
According to police, Gomez “killed his ex-wife and self-harmed before calling the police.” At the emergency number, he told officers: “I cut her throat with glass,” reports KSNV.
The couple, who shared three children, were married for 14 years, but they decided to separate in 2022. However, they recently got back together and decided to spend the weekend together in Las Vegas.
Lopez-Garcia’s cause of death was listed as strangulation, with other significant injuries and sharp force injuries to the head and neck.
Fernando Gomez, 42, is accused of killing his ex-wife. They were on a weekend getaway in Las Vegas. He would have admitted his guilt to agents
Nydia Lopez-Garcia, 37, was found dead on May 28 in a room at the MGM Hotel on the Las Vegas Strip. She is pictured with her three children – two of whom are forced to stay in Nevada instead of returning to Texas.
Their three children also joined them in Las Vegas, but stayed in a different hotel room.
Now the family faces another battle. Candace Garza, Nydia Lopez-Garcia’s sister, says two of the children cannot return to Mesquite, Texas because Gomez still has parental rights over them.
As a result, the two youngest children cannot attend their mother’s funeral.
It could be two months before the kids can go back to Texas, their aunt claims.
said Garza CBS: ‘The children were in another hotel room. My sister fought to get back with the kids. It was a brutal murder due to domestic violence.
‘[The children] have been released to me, but we must not leave Clark County until the details of jurisdiction between Las Vegas and Dallas are settled.
“I was told that the judges in Las Vegas have to communicate with the judges in Texas and they have to transfer jurisdiction.
“It’s honest.. and I don’t say this lightly.. it’s the hardest, most challenging thing I’ve ever faced in my entire life.
“Your sister was taken from you in a brutal murder, there are orphans who can’t go home.
“They’re not even allowed to go to their mother’s funeral. We are trying to postpone her funeral so we can get them home and time is running out.
“They grieve with just one person instead of a family that supports them and surrounds them with love.”
The GoFundMe page read: ‘At the heart of this story is a family that has suffered an unimaginable act. Three children lost their mother to a senseless act of violence, and they are now overwhelmed in the midst of their grief by the question of where to go next.
Their mother was a victim of domestic violence and died on May 28, 2023 in a hotel room at MGM Grand in Las Vegas.
“Currently, their maternal Aunt Candace just got emergency custody of them, but she has to stay in Las Vegas for now (they live in a suburb of Dallas, Texas).
As you know, the financial burden associated with a tragedy can be just as devastating as the emotional toll.
“The family is in urgent need of financial help and I hope their story will resonate with the public.”