Projo 7 to 7 News Blog

PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- The Coventry man accused of strangling a woman in her apartment on Saturday was out on bail for sexually assaulting a 16-year-old girl only months ago.

Travis Garcia had just turned 18 in March when he was arrested for backing a teenage acquaintance into the corner of a building in Coventry and forcibly fondling her, said Coventry Police Capt. Bryan Volpe. He was charged with second-degree sexual assault and released on $5,000 personal recognizance.

But for the last several months, Garcia continued getting arrested, off and on, violating the terms of his bail and getting sent away for a short time to the Adult Correctional Institutions.

After pleading no contest to assaulting someone during a fight on the bike path in Coventry in May, Garcia was ordered by District Court Judge Frank J. Cenerini to attend a mental health program, according to court records.

Then in June, Garcia was arrested for breaking into a house in Coventry and making himself at home while the owner was camping, Volpe said on Tuesday.

Officers found him in the house, where he'd made something to eat and stole coins and cash, Volpe said. Garcia had addresses at 81 Boston St. and around the corner at 8 Hazard Ave. in Coventry, although it's unclear where he'd been living.

"He admitted to staying there," said Volpe. "He said he didn't know what else to do."

After the break-in arrest, Garcia ended up at the ACI.

Superior Court Judge Stephen Nugent found that Garcia had violated his bail on the sexual-assault charge, so he sentenced him to 60 days at the ACI, said courts spokesman Craig Berke. Garcia's sentence for the violation ended on Aug. 24.

Then, at some point, he came into Jeannine Garcia's life. (The police say the suspect and the victim are not related, although they share the same last name.)

The tiny 32-year-old woman was living with her small dog in a one-bedroom apartment in the Cathedral Square Apartments. She was recently separated from her husband, and her young son and daughter were placed in foster care because she was unable to care for them, according to her friends.

But Ms. Garcia was friendly with many in the homeless community, and she loved going out and meeting different men.

One of them was Garcia.

Early Sunday morning, he was seen allegedly speeding in Ms. Garcia's white Ford Taurus through Connecticut.

When the police tried to stop the car, Garcia tried to lose them in an industrial park, said Providence Police Capt. James Desmarais. Instead, he plowed the car into a parked tractor-trailer -- burying it under the trailer and trapping himself inside, Desmarais said.

The police in Clinton, Conn., thought they had a reckless driver -- until the Providence police discovered what had happened to the Ford's owner.

Providence police officers Lawrence Werchadlo, Alberto DaCruz, and Robert Papa Jr., went to her apartment at 4 a.m., said Desmarais. The door was ajar, and Ms. Garcia's body was in her bedroom, he said.

On Monday morning, Garcia was due at Kent County District Court for a pre-trial conference on the sexual-assault charge. When Garcia didn't appear, Judge Bennett R. Gallo issued a warrant.

At the same time, the Providence police were getting their own warrant signed -- charging Garcia with murder.

 Tags  homicide Providence police Providence RI

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