Man accused of fatally stabbing mother, daughter in Tampa arrested in Maryland

TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — A man who is accused of fatally stabbing two people at a Tampa apartment complex over the weekend was arrested Monday in Maryland, according to the Tampa Police Department.

Jean Pierre Ojeda Salazar, 25, was arrested by the U.S. Marshals Task Force, police said. Police did not say where in Maryland he was taken into custody, but he was taken to a jail in Montgomery County, which is the county directly northwest of Washington, D.C.

A 14-year-old girl and 35-year-old woman both died in the stabbing on Sunday morning in the 14000 block of Riveredge Drive, police said.

Salazar allegedly stabbed both victims after an argument before he left the home in a white sedan he eventually abandoned, according to police.

“Mourning the loss of a loved one, after their lives were taken in such a tragic manner, is unfathomable,” Chief Lee Bercaw said in a statement. “Salazar’s arrest proves that our detectives will stop at nothing to ensure that those who commit a crime, especially one as heinous as this one, are held accountable.”

Neighbors told News Channel 8 that the victims were a mother and daughter.

Their next-door neighbor, Demian Dellarco, said he had just returned from a bike ride Sunday morning when a friend of the victims came up to him, crying.

“I see the girl, one girl [that I] never see here,” Dellarco said. “Say, ‘Ah, help me, help me, please, please.”

Though Dellarco didn’t know it yet, his neighbors had been stabbed to death. He said he had another neighbor call 911.

“For me, it’s not normal, this situation,” Dellarco said. “I live in here five years. So secure here.”

Dellarco said the victims lived in the apartment complex for a couple months and only spoke Spanish, but he didn’t know them that well.

“This is unexpected,” said Tobiasz Hose, another neighbor. “For the past two years I’ve been here, it’s, you know, this is the first incident that has probably ever happened since I’ve been here.”

Neighbors said it’s rare to see cops in the area.

“I immediately closed all my blinds, locked my door,” Noah Berkman said. “I was standing out on my porch, but, you know, I’m still looking around, you know, always being on guard, head on a swivel.”

Salazar was charged with murder in the first degree with a weapon, murder in the second degree with a weapon, and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, police said.

This is a developing story. Stay up to date on the latest from News Channel 8 on-air and on the go with the free WFLA News Channel 8 mobile app .