A Virginia mom has been found dead in a makeshift tent at a campground, and authorities have arrested a man in New Jersey who drove off from the scene in her car in her slaying.
The body of Cara Abbruscato, 41, was found around 3 p.m. Saturday underneath a tarp that was tied to a tree to make a tent in Burke Lake Park in Fairfax Station, the Fairfax County Police Department announced (FCPD).
Abbruscato had stab wounds and lacerations to her upper body, but an autopsy will confirm the official cause of death, police said at a press conference on Monday, according to NBC Washington.
Rami El Sayed was arrested and charged with second-degree murder in connection with Abbruscato’s death by police in Paterson, New Jersey early Monday, the FCPD explained.
Authorities were able to follow El Sayed – who drove off in Abbruscato’s car – to the Garden State by tracking the vehicle’s license plate, DC News Now reported.
The suspect is now being extradited back to Fairfax County.
Investigators believe that Abbruscato and El Sayed met a few days before the alleged killing, FCPD Major Jeff Reiff said Monday, per FOX 5.
“Surveillance video from the park had put them together at various different points in the last seven [to] 10 days,” he explained.
Abbruscato was previously reported missing on Sept. 3, when authorities said she was “endangered due to mental &/or physical health concerns,” a previous statement from the FCPD indicated.
She was found safe later that day, the post stated.
One man camping in Burke Lake Park said he met Abbruscato shortly before her death, and that she told him she was previously reported missing and had a record for narcotics possession, NBC Washington reported.
She seemed like she was “turning a new leaf in life,” the camper said, adding that Abbruscato and El Sayed appeared to be in a romantic relationship.
He did not suspect anything when the pair’s vehicles disappeared, he told the outlet.
There were no weapons found at the scene, police said.
Authorities have asked anyone with information about the case or who may have been at Burke Lake Park around the time of Abbruscato’s death to come forward.