Plano man's young children were at home at time of alleged murder of estranged wife: affidavit
Plano man accused of murdering wife with children in house
A Plano man has been arrested and charged with the murder of his estranged wife, a crime that reportedly happened with the couple's young children in the residence. FOX 4's Peyton Yager has more.
PLANO, Texas - A Plano man charged with the murder of his estranged wife answered a police welfare check with a blood stain on his shirt, and the couple's young children were at home at the time of the alleged crime.
Plano murder arrest
Jake Bigoni, 37 (Collin County)
37-year-old Jake Bigoni was arrested on Wednesday, August 12, after police conducted a welfare check for Eliana Bigoni, his estranged wife. Police found her body at Bigoni's apartment in the 4700 block of Charles Place.
Bigoni was initially arrested and charged with felony abuse of a corpse. On Thursday, Plano Police obtained a murder warrant for Bigoni and booked him into the Collin County Jail.
Dig deeper:
An arrest warrant details that police conducted a welfare check on Eliana after a friend reported she failed to show up at an 8:30 a.m. breakfast on Wednesday and was unable to contact her.
The friend told police Eliana and Jake Bigoni had been separated and going through a divorce, and Eliana was going to pick the couple's 2 and 5-year-old children up that morning.
Police were alerted to potential safety concerns involving Jake Bigoni's previous violent behavior.
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When police arrived at Bigoni's residence at The Parker Apartments around 10:30, he answered the door with a large stain on his shirt. Bigoni told police the stain came from cleaning his home, and said Eliana came by the apartment earlier but wasn't currently present.
Police later received a phone call from Bigoni's mother, who said her son told her over the phone, "I have something to tell you. She's dead. We got in a fight and she's dead." That phone call came 30 minutes before police conducted the welfare check.
Apartment at Charles Place
Police detained Bigoni and determined the stain on his shirt was blood. When officers searched the trunk of a white Hyundai vehicle in the apartment's garage, they found Eliana Bigoni's body with significant damage to her face and head.
The couple's children were unharmed in the apartment at the time of the alleged incident, and police removed them as they continued their investigation.
What they're saying:
"You are talking about two kids who were present when this incident or crime occurred," Plano Police Officer Jerry Minton tells FOX 4's Peyton Yager. "I can't speculate as to what they may or may not have seen, but they were present."
Plano Police Ofc. Jerry Minton
What we don't know:
The Collin County Medical Examiner has not released Eliana Bigoni's official cause of death.
What's next:
Jake Bigoni is being held without bond in the Collin County Jail.
The Source: Information in this story comes from an arrest affidavit from the Plano Police Department and previous FOX 4 reporting.