South Florida murder suspect commits suicide on I-10 after traffic stop in Baldwin County

BALDWIN COUNTY, Ala. (WKRG) — Less than an hour after a notification was sent to all law enforcement agencies on the Gulf Coast to be on the lookout for a suspicious vehicle involved in a murder in Hillsborough County, Florida, the truck was spotted by Baldwin County. Alabama state deputies and troopers traveling west on I-10.

The traffic stop was near the 40 mile marker, just east of the Malbis exit, according to Sgt. Nate Lamplugh of the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office.

The driver did not respond to the officer’s commands after the stop, so a drone was deployed, revealing a person slumped inside the truck’s cab.

“They eventually approached the vehicle and determined the driver had died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound.”

The driver was identified as Maira Pacheco Nuñez, 58, of Tampa, Florida.

According to the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, detectives learned that Pacheco Nuñez shot her boyfriend, Kelbys Avila, 50, then fled the scene in a vehicle.

Detectives developed probable cause and obtained an arrest warrant for Pacheco Nuñez for second-degree murder with a firearm.

Traffic was backed up on westbound I-10 for hours while investigators with the Baldwin County Sheriff’s Office examined the scene.

“Due to the fact that this is a suspect vehicle involved in a murder, there are many crime scene issues to resolve at this location,” Lamplugh said.

On Wednesday shortly before 5 p.m., all traffic lanes were reopened.