2 RI men indicted on murder charges in death of pregnant Mass. woman whose body was dumped in pond

PROVIDENCE, R.I. — Two Rhode Island men have been indicted on murder charges in the death of a pregnant Massachusetts woman whose body was found dumped in an icy pond in 2022, law enforcement officials announced Thursday.

A Rhode Island grand jury on Wednesday returned an indictment charging Michael Lambert, 46, of Pawtucket, and Gary Gromkiewicz, 36, of Lincoln, with murder in the death of Leila Duarte DaLuz, of Brockton, whose body was recovered from Carbuncle Pond in Coventry on Dec. 21, 2022, according to Rhode Island Attorney General Peter F. Neronha and Rhode Island Colonel Darnell S. Weaver.

Gromkiewicz, who was accompanied by Lambert, traveled to pick up DaLuz at her home around 2:30 a.m. on that December day, Neronha and Weaver said. DaLuz, who happened to be Gromkiewicz’s ex-girlfriend, was said to be pregnant at the time.

During the course of that morning, the trio made multiple stops at gas stations and convenience stores throughout Rhode Island, cell phone location data and surveillance video indicated.

Investigators said that the location data ultimately tracked them to western Coventry at 6:18 a.m., in an area where Carbuncle Pond is located, and where DaLuz’s body was later recovered.

DaLuz’s body was found by a local fisherman, beneath the ice, with lacerations on her head, according to Neronha and Weaver.

A medical examiner’s report later confirmed that DaLuz sustained blunt-force trauma to the head and that she had water in her lungs, indicating she was alive when she entered the water.

Lambert and Gromkiewicz, both of whom are convicted felons, were arrested in connection with DaLuz’s murder in May.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

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