A lot of people in Delray Beach probably remember where they were and what they were doing when they heard about this crime.
Last summer a woman’s body was found shoved into suitcases floating in the Intracoastal Waterway.
After identifying the dismembered body and catching the suspect, the lead detective in the investigation is being recognized for his efforts.
Delray Beach police Detective Michael Liberta is a candidate for detective of the year by the First Responders Appreciation Foundation.
“I don’t think I’ll see another case like this,” Liberta told WPTV.
He’s talking about the hot Friday afternoon last July. He remembers being on his way home from work when he got a call about the suspicious suitcases stuffed with parts of a woman’s body.
When the investigation was unfolding over a two-week period, WPTV spoke with people in the area, mostly near the George Bush Boulevard bridge.
One woman who lived near where the suitcases were found and where neighbors reported suspicious activity said it was a surprise.
“Kind of shocking to hear this happen in your community,” she said.
This crime led detectives into a 14-day around-the-clock operation.
It’s an investigation Liberta still remembers clearly. Police started with nothing but a luggage tag with some letters on it.
“Originally, we had nothing,” Liberta remembered.
Police had a lot of questions and a lot of work left ahead of them before they would eventually find answers.
“From multi-agency marine operations to search warrants on everything you can imagine, from DNA, to cars, to storage facilities, to residents,” he said.
Liberta said a turning point for the case was when they asked the public for help. He said they were flooded with calls.
Meanwhile, at the Delray Beach Police Department, Liberta and his team searched for clues, reviewed security video and interviewed witnesses.
All those pieces led them to their victim, Aydil Barbosa Fontes, an 80-year-old woman originally from Brazil. The investigation also led police to her husband, William Lowe, as their suspect.
Police found a bloody chainsaw at a storage unit he had, as well as other evidence from surveillance video.
“It came full circle,” Liberta said.
Liberta has been in law enforcement for over a decade. He’s held different ranks from road patrol to working with narcotics.
He said the violent crimes unit investigates about 300 cases a year, but very few, if any, are like this one.
“It’s not often that you have human remains in multiple suitcases,” he said. “So, I think this case will stay with me forever.”
One lesson Liberta said he’s learned over the years keeps coming back to his mind when he faces a challenging case.
“Slow and steady wins the race,” he said. “Even when you find that key piece of evidence, you can’t just jump and try to go out and make your arrest. You want to make your case as strong as possible.”
He also credited his team, which he said is crucial to getting cases like these closed.
“You can’t do everything yourself,” he said. “You got to be able to delegate and you got to trust your partners.”
Now he’s up for perhaps one of the biggest awards in law enforcement.
“I have no expectations, but I’m excited,” he said.
Lowe has been charged with first-degree murder and abuse of a dead human body. He has pleaded not guilty.