Coral Springs man found guilty of murder, dumping body in Delray Beach canal
A Coral Springs man has been convicted of a gruesome murder in Delray Beach.
Last month, a jury found Christopher Soto, 25, guilty of stabbing a 51-year-old woman in the chest, dumping her body in a canal and attempting to cover up the crime.
The saga began on June 25, 2023, when Palm Beach County Sheriff’s Office deputies pulled a partially submerged body from a canal near 5558 W. Atlantic Ave.
The woman had been stabbed eight times and wrapped in a black floral-patterned sheet, authorities said.
She had been in the water for several days, according to her autopsy report, making her difficult to identify. So, officials asked the public for help.
On June 27, detectives received a tip from someone who recognized the clothes the victim was wearing — a leopard print top and black pants, with bright yellow nails.
Court documents say that the victim was staying with a neighbor at the time.
Soto, the neighbor’s boyfriend, told her that he and the victim had sex while the neighbor was at work, but denied having anything to do with the murder.
He said he was sleeping at the time she disappeared, according to his arrest report.
Court records say Soto’s girlfriend later identified the bedsheet the victim’s body was wrapped in as coming from her bed. Police also matched blood found in Soto’s car and the home to the victim.
Soto was arrested outside of his Coral Springs home on July 3 and pled not guilty, records show.
Now, after five days of trial and several hours of deliberation, the jury on May 21 found Soto guilty of second-degree murder and evidence tampering, reduced from the original charges which included first-degree murder.
Sentencing is scheduled for June 18.
