Taxi Driver Kills Woman, Sleeps with Her Corpse, Then Buries Her in Shallow Grave

A horrific crime has shaken the community of San Juan de Lurigancho, Lima, after the remains of 19-year-old Mercedes Sánchez Querevalú were found buried in a neighbour’s garden. The victim had been missing for a week before the gruesome discovery on the morning of April 14, 2025.

Esteban Chicche Sullo, 51, a motorcycle taxi driver known to Mercedes and her family, has confessed to the murder. He admitted to police that he struck the young woman twice on the head with a stick, rendering her unconscious, before taking her to his home. There, he committed further unspeakable acts, later dismembering her body into eight parts.

Mercedes, a mother to a two-year-old girl, left her home in Villa María del Triunfo on April 6 to meet with Chicche, reportedly to collect money he owed her. When she failed to return, her mother filed a missing person report.

According to Chicche’s confession, he kept the body inside his room for up to 24 hours before deciding to dismember it in his bathroom, a process he claimed took around three hours. He then used a ladder to access an unoccupied neighbouring property and buried the remains in a one-metre deep hole in the courtyard.

In an attempt to cover up the crime, Chicche disposed of Mercedes’ clothes and phone and used bleach to clean his home. Police believe that Mercedes may have been sexually abused before being killed, and are continuing to investigate the full details of the case.