A cab driver who earned a living picking up people at a Metro-North train station in a quiet New York village went missing the first week of December, having last been seen picking up a passenger in the middle of the day.
Days later, his body was found floating in a nearby reservoir by two fisherman.
The murder mystery has been unfolding in the sleepy town of Brewster, with a population of just 2,500. The question police are looking to solve: Who killed 66-year-old cab driver, Aurelio Zhunio-Orbez, and dumped his body in the nearby Croton Falls Reservoir?
“It’s bizarre in the fact that violent crimes aren’t usually part of this community,” said Putnam County Sheriff Brian Hess.
Zhunio-Orbez was a father of four who lived just over the border into Connecticut, in Danbury. He worked for his cousin, who manages Orbes Taxi Service in Brewster.
On Monday, Dec. 1, the victim’s cousin says Zhunio-Orbez picked up a customer in the middle of the day from the Brewster train station. That’s where the problems started, according to Hess.
What exactly happened remains unclear, as police confirmed that the Metro-North station in town does not have surveillance cameras. But the victim’s cousin said Zhunio-Orbez didn’t answer his phone for the rest of the day after he picked up a fare.
The taxi cab driver’s family in Danbury reported him missing. Zhunio-Orbez’s taxi car was soon found abandoned in the parking lot of the nearby Purdy train station and swept for fingerprints and DNA. On Sunday, the gruesome discovery had been made.
“Two fisherman were fishing in the Croton Falls Reservoir noticed a body floating,” said Hess. “He was just floating in the reservoir.”
His cellphone was also found near his body. The victim’s cousin estimates he was probably carrying roughly $200 in cash at the time of his murder, and police believe the murder may have been part of a robbery. Zhunio-Orbez’s death ruled a homicide.
The Putnam County Sheriff says its possible the suspect knew this area well and hopped on the train in Purdy. Aurelio Zhunio’s wake is set for Saturday. His family is raising funds to help transport his body to his native country of Ecuador to be buried.
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