The body of a missing New Jersey woman was found tied up in a shallow grave where police believe she was buried alive, NBCNews.com reported.
Fatima Perez, 41, was reported missing on Monday -- the same day she left her Camden home with her landscaper, Carlos Alicea-Antonetti, who offered to purchase a new car for her.
On Wednesday, investigators discovered Perez's body about 20 miles away in Monroe Township.
Her eyes and mouth were covered with duct tape before she was buried, NBCNews.com said. An autopsy report stated Perez died of asphyxiation.
Alicea-Antonetti, owner of Villa Coamo Landscaping and General Maintenance, and one of his employees, Ramon Ortiz, told authorities they buried Perez alive.
Both men were arrested and held on $5 million bail. At their arraignment, Alicia-Antonetti and Ortiz applied for public defenders.
According to Perez's family, she was carrying $8,000 with her when the landscaper picked her up.
In a probable cause statement, Alicea-Antonetti allegedly told police he and Perez got in an argument and she fell out of his van. Despite being hurt, Perez got back in the car and was laying in the back when he picked up Ortiz.
The men then blindfolded Perez before driving to a wooded area where they dug a hole to bury her alive in, which they tried to hide with branches and debris. Both suspects told police she was alive when they left the scene.
After Perez's family told police about her plans to buy a car with Alicea-Antonetti, authorities tracked down both men. During the time of his arrest, he had around $7,000 cash in his pocket.
