Where is Sylvia Flores now? Details about Netflix’s I Am a Killer: A Mother’s Choice subject, explored
Sylvia Flores was Jose Menchaca's girlfriend, who was brutally murdered by two drug mafia gang members on September 30, 2014. Both Jose and Sylvia were drug addicts, who were lured by Jose's cousin Candie Dominguez, for a drug deal to their residence at 400 Block Hillwood Drive in San Antonio, Texas. Right after the couple entered the bedroom, Candie's boyfriend Daniel Lopez, and his cousin Gabriel Monera started beating Jose with aluminum bats until they was bloody and subconscious.
The culprits then choked Jose to death, while Sylvia was taken by the gang members to the washroom, tied, and stripped out of her clothes. After more than five days of being held captive, Sylvia Flores finally made her escape and informed the police. Jose Menchaca's body was dismembered into pieces by the murderers. They burned his hands and legs in a barbeque grill, while his decomposing head and torso, were retrieved by the police inside a plastic tub, in a back storage area.
Sylvia testified against Candie Dominguez, Daniel Lopez, and Gabriel Monera, which sent them behind bars. As now, Sylvia Flores is currently living a nonpublic life, close to her family, and distant from media attention. Sylvia focuses on focus on the brutal murder of Jose Menchaca through the two episodes titled A Mother's Choice on Netflix's I AM A KILLER Season 6.
What is the story of Jose Menchaca and Sylvia Flores?
As per The Cinemaholic, Jose Menchaca was a man of Mexican descent, who was born and raised in the neighborhood of San Antonio, Texas. From his teens, Jose started getting involved with drugs and the Texas Mexican Mafia and began having trouble with the law for minor crimes. Although he wasn't directly involved in a gang, however, he committed robberies and was deep into drug addiction.
Sylvia Flores was in a living relationship with Jose, and both of them were suffering from drug abuse. As per a San Antonio Express-News article, published on September 30, 2022, Jose had a cousin named Candie Dominguez, through whom he used to make drug deals with her then-boyfriend named Daniel Lopez.
It was in September 2014, when Jose went into a heated argument with Daniel, during a drug deal. Soon the argument turned into physical violence, where Jose stabbed Daniel, while the latter shot him back. However, Daniel planned on exacting his revenge on Jose, in a more gruesome way. He made a plan with his cousin Gabriel Moreno, to use Daniel's girlfriend Candie, and Gabriel's girlfriend Sabrina Cavazos, as bait.
Sylvia Flores encountered her boyfriend beaten to death
It was on September 30, 2024, when Sylvia Flores and Jose Menchaca went to Daniel's residence at Hillwood Drive in San Antonio, Texas. As per San Antonio Express-News, Jose wanted to get some drugs in exchange for stolen Mary Kay makeup. According to a KSTAT article published on November 2, 2018, right when the couple entered their bedroom, Daniel and Gabriel jumped in.
Both of them had aluminum bats, with which they started smashing Jose. He immediately fell on the floor and started begging for help, however, they didn't stop. Sylvia Flores was forcefully taken to the washroom, where she was stripped out of her clothes and kept locked. Candie Dominguez was also involved in the crime, and she saw her cousin, getting beaten until he was bloody.
As per San Antonio Express-News, Daniel's cousin Dennis Austin went to the scene and saw Jose slipping in and out of consciousness. He couldn't stop them, knowing it would pose a threat to his own life. Sylvia Flores was held hostage in the Hillwood residence for the next three days before she was shifted to a house on Canter Horse Drive on the Northwest Side.
She was then moved back to the Hillwood house, where she saw, Jose's chopped-off hands and legs burned in a barbeque grill, with Daniel poking it with a stick. After almost more than five days of being held as a hostage, Sylvia Flores flew the gang members, with a friend who provided her $ 25 and a cellphone. She immediately went to the police and informed them about Jose's murder.
Sylvia Flores testified against the culprits in court.
As per a KSATA article, published on November 2, 2018, the trial for Daniel Lopez took place at the Cadena-Reeves Justice Center, by District Judge Ron Rangel. Additionally, with Sylvia Flores' testimony, Dennis Austin also testified in the court. He said that Jose was still alive after getting beaten, and was killed by strangulation, according to attorney J. Charles Bunk was an extremely dangerous convict, who tried to break out and attack the juries.
It was on June 5, 2018, when Daniel Lopez was convicted for the murder of Jose Menchaca, and in November 2018, was sentenced to lifetime imprisonment without parole for 30 years. He was forcefully taken by the security outside of the courtroom and blew a kiss to the media right before his exit.
Gabriel Moreno was taken to trial in March 2018 at the 379th State District Court, However, due to a lack of DNA evidence, his case was transferred and eventually declared not guilty. It was in February 2019, when Candie Dominguez was found guilty for her involvement in the murder. She was sentenced to 30 years imprisonment. She tried to declare herself innocent, saying she was forced to be involved in the crime, as Daniel threatened to kill her children otherwise.
As per Netflix's I AM A KILLER Season 6, Candie Dominguez is currently incarcerated in the William P. Hobby Unit, in Marlin, Texas. To know more about the case watch the two episodes of A Mother's Choice on the streaming platform.
