A Florida man has been indicted on a first-degree murder charge after allegedly killing his wife more than two years ago and arranging for his niece to pose as the victim, making it appear she was still alive and living in the Philippines.
Epifanio Ramos Gaminde, 48, is charged in the death of his wife, Maria Gaminde, who was 44 when she went missing.
The case dates back to January 2024, when Maria Gaminde’s family reported her missing. The Volusia County Sheriff’s Office said she was last seen at Disney World on Dec. 16, 2023.
Over the following months, the family said they received text messages and emails from a person claiming to be her, Sheriff Mike Chitwood told reporters. There were also purchases on her credit cards in the Philippines and Japan. However, the family did not believe the victim, a high school teacher, was the one making the purchases or sending the messages.
The couple moved to the U.S. from the Philippines in 2008. Epifanio Gaminde told police that he and his wife were having “marital difficulties” and that she “took off” to her home country or Japan. Chitwood, however, said everything the suspect told detectives was a “lie.”
Investigators travelled to the Philippines to find the person using the credit cards and sending the messages. They found her, and she turned out to be the suspect’s niece.
She told investigators that around the time of Maria Gaminde’s disappearance, the suspect sent her his wife’s credit cards and driver’s license and instructed her to pose as the victim. Chitwood said the niece is not facing charges because she is cooperating with authorities.
Police also spoke with a neighbour who said the suspect was installing a fountain in his backyard at their DeBary home around the time the victim went missing. Detectives are searching the area. So far, they have not recovered a body, but they believe she is dead.
“There’s nothing to indicate Maria is still alive,” Chitwood said.
A grand jury indicted Epifanio Gaminde on Monday. He remains in the Volusia County Jail without bond and is due back in court Dec. 1.