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In 2017, prompted by advances in forensic technology and requests from the victims' family members, Judge Rafael Lasala decreed that the murders be reopened and reinvestigated. Soon after, a team of investigators was assembled and started re-examining the cases from scratch, quickly deducing that the
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Due to this, investigators focused their attention on Harvey, the son of a high-ranking lieutenant stationed at the
Zaragoza Air Base but was not part of the unit assigned there, as he was noted to be absent from the base at the time of the crimes. However, when they went to search for him, they were
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Over the following years, several suspects were investigated and some even arrested on suspicion for the two murders, but no charges were brought against any of them. Investigators at the time deduced that the perpetrator was likely a foreigner - at the time, immigration in
Zaragoza was low and there
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Approximately half a month later, on April 16, 22-year-old teacher Eva María Aznárez
Morenilla was attacked by Harvey when she arrived at her apartment complex. During the assault, Aznárez was struck with a wrench and fell to the ground, whereupon she was strangled to death. However, before he could
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in the family garage, she was ambushed by Harvey in the elevator, who proceeded to choke her to death. Upon doing so, he dragged the body to a corner of the garage, covered it up with her raincoat and stole Lazáro's shoes and purse, before promptly leaving the crime scene. On the following day, her
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In the early hours of March 4 to 5, 1992, 25-year-old
Mercedes Lazáro Sanmiguel, an employee of the Department of Industry, Commerce and Tourism, drove back to her apartment in Zaragoza after spending most of the day with friends. At the time, her parents, who lived with her, were visiting the town
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As of August 2022, it is unclear whether there are any ongoing investigations to clarify whether Harvey has committed any other violent crimes, either in his native United States or abroad. The pendant found next to Aznárez's body was later sold at a public auction, eliminating the possibility of
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teacher, who identified the method as a complex maneuver taught in the
American military. After months of investigating and gathering clues, investigators officially identified Harvey as the most likely perpetrator in 2018. As a result, both cases were closed and are now considered solved.
180:, Italy, further narrowed down the suspect list to officers serving at the Zaragoza Air Base. Other factors that led to the cases being linked together included that both victims were young, blonde white women of medium height; both were committed on a public holiday (Cincomarzada and
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Following the closure of the
Zaragoza Air Base, Harvey eventually returned to the United States and at some point moved to Stone Mountain, Georgia. There he worked in the local police department and was even promoted to sheriff, a position in which he served until his death from
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parents returned to
Zaragoza, and after searching for Lazáro for some time, her father eventually found her body and notified the authorities. An autopsy determined her cause of death to be strangulation, with no apparent signs of sexual assault.
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steal anything from her, Harvey was seen by the complex's security guard, which prompted him to flee. As Aznárez's murder shared great similarities to the murder of Lazáro, the two murders were quickly linked together.
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were few young black men who fit the description of the man fleeing the Aznárez crime scene. In addition to this, the discovery of a pendant typically worn by an
American unit which had been stationed at the
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unable to locate him or positively identify to whom the pendant belonged, and as they lacked concrete evidence to issue an arrest warrant, the investigation was stalled and both cases went
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injuries suffered by both victims were identical in nature. The way in which they were strangled led them to contact Carlos Alba, an army colonel and
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for Lazáro and Aznárez's murders expired in 2012, meaning that even if he was linked to the crimes, he could not be charged.
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301:[Dying of terror: 22 years have passed since the death of young Mercedes Lazáro as she was about to be raped].
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480:[He killed them 26 years ago, became a sheriff, but now the weird choke technique he used gave him away].
299:"Morir de terror: se cumplen 22 años del fallecimiento de la joven Mercedes Lázaro cuando iba a ser violada"
258:[The crime of Fueros de Aragón goes unpunished as the murderer has not been arrested in 20 years].
478:"Las mató hace 26 años, se hizo sheriff, pero ahora la rara técnica de estrangulamiento que usó lo delató"
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526:[Twenty-six years to attribute two murders to a criminal with "authorship signature"].
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129:, Spain, committed in March and April 1992. At the time of the crimes, Harvey served in the
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and fingerprints, but neither could be conclusively matched at the time. As a result, the
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435:[An American soldier from the Base, now deceased, killed the two girls from 92].
344:[Investigation in the murders of two girls in Zaragoza 25 years ago reopened].
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342:"Reabren la investigación por el asesinato de dos muchachas en Zaragoza hace 25 años"
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121:(August 1972 – August 22, 2016) was an American police officer and former sheriff of
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524:"Veintiséis años para atribuir dos asesinatos a un criminal con "firma de autor""
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256:"El crimen de Fueros de Aragón, impune al no ser detenido el asesino en 20 años"
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350:(in Spanish). February 23, 2017. Archived from the original on April 4, 2019
486:(in Spanish). April 16, 2018. Archived from the original on August 31, 2022
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433:"Un militar americano de la Base, ya muerto, mató a las dos chicas del 92"
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439:(in Spanish). Archived from the original on August 31, 2022
398:(in Spanish). Archived from the original on August 31, 2022
392:[A United States sheriff killed Mercedes and Eva].
305:(in Spanish). Archived from the original on August 31, 2022
264:(in Spanish). Archived from the original on August 31, 2022
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390:"Un sheriff de Estados Unidos mató a Mercedes y a Eva"
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154:, leaving Lazáro all by herself. After parking her
595:Deaths from colorectal cancer in the United States
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575:African-American United States Army personnel
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590:Deaths from cancer in Georgia (U.S. state)
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88:March 4 – April 16, 1992 (known)
600:Fellows of the American Physical Society
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297:José Manuel Gabriel (March 2, 2014).
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610:People from Natchez, Mississippi
565:African-American police officers
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625:Violence against women in Spain
560:20th-century American criminals
221:on August 22, 2016, at age 44.
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605:Georgia (U.S. state) sheriffs
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620:United States Army soldiers
254:E. Bayona (March 5, 2012).
174:Naval Air Station Sigonella
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585:Criminals from Mississippi
522:Marta Gurú (May 8, 2018).
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615:Suspected serial killers
234:extracting DNA from it.
212:Death and identification
580:American male criminals
123:Stone Mountain, Georgia
58:Stone Mountain, Georgia
437:El Periódico de Aragón
261:El Periódico de Aragón
206:statute of limitations
186:Spanish Armed Forces
119:Malcolm Abdul Harvey
40:Natchez, Mississippi
33:Malcolm Abdul Harvey
84:Span of crimes
303:Extra Confidencial
131:United States Army
529:Heraldo de Aragón
135:Zaragoza Air Base
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167:Investigation
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219:colon cancer
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152:Cincomarzada
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555:2016 deaths
550:1972 births
190:fetishistic
36:August 1972
544:Categories
490:August 31,
443:August 31,
402:August 31,
354:August 31,
309:August 31,
268:August 31,
238:References
483:Univision
156:Renault 5
500:cite web
453:cite web
412:cite web
395:El Mundo
364:cite web
319:cite web
278:cite web
192:motive.
127:Zaragoza
107:Zaragoza
102:State(s)
227:jujutsu
141:Murders
93:Country
75:Victims
70:Details
178:Sicily
148:Teruel
60:, U.S.
42:, U.S.
96:Spain
506:link
492:2022
459:link
445:2022
418:link
404:2022
370:link
356:2022
325:link
311:2022
284:link
270:2022
198:cold
48:Died
29:Born
347:ABC
202:DNA
176:in
146:of
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