NORFOLK, Va. — Naval court officials have recommended there is enough evidence for the murder case against sailor Jermiah Copeland, charged in the death of Norfolk sailor Angelina Resendiz, to proceed to trial, according to a U.S. Navy public affairs official.
Resendiz was reported missing from Naval Station Norfolk on May 29. Her body was discovered nearly two weeks later in a Norfolk neighborhood.
The public affairs officer exclusively shared this update with WTKR News 3's Jay Greene on Sunday after President Trump spoke at the Titans of the Sea Navy 250th celebration at Naval Station Norfolk.
Watch previous coverage: Trial counsel alleges Copeland killed Resendiz and hid her body in his barracks
Jermiah Copeland has been charged with her murder.
Resendiz was last seen on May 29 and was reported missing by NCIS on May 31. But until Thursday's hearing, little detail was known publicly about the hours before and after Resendiz's death.
According to trial counsel, on the evening of May 28, Resendiz went to the barracks of Copeland, another culinary specialist sailor assigned to the USS James E. Williams.
Around 11:30 p.m., a text was sent from Resendiz's phone to a friend that said "f—k you."
A few hours later, about 2:14 a.m., Resendiz made a call to a friend and fellow sailor where she appeared to be crying and pleading for someone to come to Copeland's barracks to pick her up.
Norfolk
TIMELINE: Everything we know about the death of Angelina Resendiz
That phone call is believed to be the last time anyone heard from Angelina Resendiz.
Within a day or two after, a Navy chief came to Copeland's barracks and saw Resendiz wrapped in a blanket. He believed she was sleeping on the bed, but trial counsel believes she was already dead.
Counsel alleged Thursday they believe that Copeland then kept Resendiz's body hidden in a closet for several days before her put her in a rolling suitcase and transporting her body to Broad Creek. She was found there on June 9.
Her cause and manner of death was ruled undetermined by the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Norfolk.
Copeland is facing the following charges: murder, sexual assault, aggravated assault, sexual misconduct, domestic violence, wrongful broadcast or distribution of an intimate visual image, obstructing justice and making a false official statement.
As of Sunday, Oct. 5, a date has not yet been set for the trial.
