Woman, daughter found dead in Orlando home ID'd

Police say victims are 36-year-old woman, 16-year-old daughter

ORLANDO, Fla. – The Orange County Sheriff's Office said a woman and her teenage daughter were found dead Monday afternoon inside an Orlando home.

Deputies said Maria Sanchez, 36, and her daughter, Destiny Banuelos, 16, were found dead in a home in the 900 block of Santa Barbara Road. Authorities said the victims died from gunshot wounds.

Detectives are interviewing friends and relatives of the victims to determine possible suspects in what authorities said is a double-homicide.

Detectives said the women lived in the home with a man. Officials told News 6 that he left early Monday morning, and when he came back around 2:30 p.m., he found the woman and girl dead and called 911.

"He fell right there and he was crying and I said, 'What's wrong with you?' and he said, 'Me girlfriend, me girlfriend. She's on the bathroom floor and I think she's dead,'" a neighbor said.

A woman, who did not want to be identified, says the man ran to her front door asking for help while another neighbor checked inside the home.

"When she came out she said, 'Oh my God, oh my God. There's two people in there and there's a lot of blood,'" the neighbor said.

News 6 was there as detectives and a man came back to the house Tuesday afternoon and took evidence bags. Neighbors tell News 6 the man lived there with the victims. Deputies have not identified him and he did not want to speak.

Neighbors say they've dealt with crime in the area before but nothing like this. Now they say they're locking their doors.

"I was scared, I didn't know what was going on. I wasn't home and when I came home, I saw all these cops," said Sabrina Megel, who lives on the street.

"My husband told me today to not answer the door for anyone if anyone came to the door," Claire Santiago said.

Megel said she was greeted by detectives blocking off her street.

"My sister called me screaming on the phone saying, 'Something happened. Something happened.' I was in the market in line trying to come home as fast as I can," Megel said.

She said she's now considering moving.

"You have to be locked, get an alarm or something, do something different until I find a new house," Megel said.

A $5,000 reward is being offered for information about the deaths. Anyone with information about the case is asked to call Crimeline at 800-423-TIPS or the Orange County Sheriff's Office.


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