A Wisconsin woman, aged 28, has been apprehended on charges of allegedly murdering her husband by shooting him in the back of the head and leaving his body in a cemetery. Cassandra J. Hult was arrested last month and charged with first-degree reckless homicide in connection with the 2020 death of Jose Santiago, according to court documents. The charges also include a dangerous weapon modifier, which could potentially increase the maximum penalty if she is found guilty.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that a jogger found Santiago’s body in a car parked at St. Adalbert Cemetery on South 13th Street on March 23, 2020. The jogger, who frequently ran through the cemetery, noticed the car had been stationary for several days. Upon closer inspection, they discovered the body inside.
Milwaukee Police Department investigators responded to the scene and concluded that Santiago had been shot once in the back of the head. A spent .38 casing, two McDonald’s soft drink cups, and a receipt timestamped 12:29 p.m. on March 22, 2020, were found in the vehicle.
Forensic analysis of the items recovered from the car revealed that a straw from one of the McDonald’s cups had Santiago’s DNA and Hult’s fingerprints on it, as reported by Milwaukee ABC affiliate WISN. Cellphone location data also indicated that both Hult and Santiago were near the cemetery shortly before Santiago’s body was found.
During a police interview, Hult revealed that she had discovered text messages from other women on Santiago’s phone on the morning of March 22, 2020. The couple had been married for approximately 18 months at that time. Hult claimed that after confronting Santiago about the messages, an argument ensued, and she was ejected from their car. She then reportedly went to her grandmother’s house.
Despite several interviews, the case eventually went cold, and Hult relocated out of state. In September 2021, while living in Arizona with another woman and her daughter, Hult allegedly threatened to kill the woman during a heated argument. She reportedly confessed to the woman via FaceTime that she had “killed her husband in Milwaukee and that she ‘has bodies on her.’” The woman’s daughter also told police that Hult admitted to killing her husband.
Furthermore, a former boyfriend of Hult’s claimed that she had confessed to him “multiple times” that she was responsible for Santiago’s death while they were living together in California. Hult was arrested on May 6 under a warrant and is currently being held on a $500,000 bond. She is scheduled to appear in Milwaukee County Circuit Court on July 10.