Castle Rock – Jose Luis Rubi-Nava faces charges of murder, kidnapping and forgery related to last week’s dragging death of a woman believed to be his girlfriend, Luz Maria Franco-Fierros, 49.
Investigators say Rubi-Nava, 36, dragged Franco-Fierros behind his truck. She suffered severe blows to her head and suffocated from the rope tied around her neck. A photograph that included Rubi-Nava was found near the body.
The attack left a trail of blood for more than a mile from Interstate 25 to Surrey Ridge Drive in north Douglas County, where the body was found Sept. 18.
Wearing an ear piece in order to hear a translator in court Monday morning, Rubi-Nava was formally told of the charges against him: premeditated murder, second-degree kidnapping, two counts of forgery and one count of possessing a forged instrument.
Kathleen Walsh, a spokeswoman for the district attorney’s office, would not elaborate on the charges or any evidence against Rubi-Nava, including how the forgery charges related to the case.
Documents in the case remain sealed.
A pretrial hearing on the evidence, to be set after a Nov. 1 hearing, will determine whether there is probable cause of Rubi-Nava’s involvement.
He is being held without bail in the Douglas County jail. U.S. Immigration Customs Enforcement has asked that Rubi-Nava, a suspected illegal immigrant, be detained.
Rubi-Nava, a construction worker, reportedly lived in an apartment in Glendale with Franco-Fierros, a mother of four children who worked at two fast-food restaurants, friends said.
As he entered court Monday, Rubi-Nava looked around the courtroom laced with reporters until finding his younger brother, Victor, then nodded and smiled briefly.
Public defender Kathleen McGuire asked for a hearing Thursday to revive her requests to limit the media’s access to court hearings.
Rubi-Nava, a Mexican citizen, is being vilified on that issue in the media, particularly talk radio shows, she said.
“My concern is that Mr. Rubi- Nava’s rights to a fair trial are diminishing as the days go on,” McGuire told Judge Paul King.
Staff writer Joey Bunch can be reached at 303-820-1174 or jbunch@denverpost.com.
