"Potential serial killer" arrested after 2 women found dead in Florida

A man who recently confessed to murdering two women in central Florida has been identified as "a potential serial killer," authorities said.

Carlos Yadiel Baez-Nieves is jailed on two counts of first-degree murder for the killings of 41-year-old Fatia Flowers and 44-year-old Nichole Daniels, which happened within the span of about a month, the Orange County Sheriff's Office announced Monday. Flowers and Daniels were found dead in March and April, respectively, CBS affiliate WKMG-TV reported.

Baez-Nieves is being held without bond for both murder charges, including one count of murder with a firearm, at the Orange County Jail, online records show. The 24-year-old faces a third charge for having an invalid driver's license, with bond for that set at $500. He was booked into the jail on Friday.

Sheriff John Mina described Baez-Nieves as a potential serial killer who intentionally targeted vulnerable women. Both victims were sex workers, Mina said, and the circumstances around their deaths were similar. Serial murder is defined as the "unlawful killing of two or more victims by the same offender(s), in separate events," according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

On two separate occasions, Baez-Nieves picked up each victim in his truck, had sex with her and strangled her, according to the sheriff. He then dumped their bodies at an intersection before driving himself home. 

"I'm confident that through their vigilance in these cases, our detectives have prevented Baez-Nieves from becoming a prolific serial killer," said Mina in a statement. "Baez-Nieves clearly targeted women he thought wouldn't be missed. He murdered them and dumped them on the side of the road like trash. But our detectives knew that Fatia and Nichole's lives were meaningful — and that they are worthy of justice."

The sheriff said that deputies were eventually able to find and arrest Baez-Nieves because he tried to sell his truck after the murders, WKMG reported. The white Ford F-150 was the same vehicle that had been spotted picking up Daniels at a local gas station the night before she was found dead. Another Florida-based CBS affiliate, WTSP, reported that surveillance video recovered from the gas station showed Baez-Nieves entering the Ford F-150 on the premises.

In:
• Serial Killer
• Florida

Emily Mae Czachor

Emily Mae Czachor is a reporter and news editor at CBSNews.com. She covers breaking news, often focusing on crime and extreme weather. Emily Mae has previously written for outlets including the Los Angeles Times, BuzzFeed and Newsweek.

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