Alexander County murder suspect requests new bond hearing after 5 years in custody

There are new developments in a high-profile case out of Alexander County where multiple people died and a home was set on fire.

Channel 9′s Dave Faherty learned that attorneys for Areli Aguirre-Avilez filed a motion asking for a bond hearing in the case later this month.

Avilez and his girlfriend, Heidi Wolfe, were both indicted for murder five years ago, and they’ve been in jail since then.

Authorities said on June 15, 2019, 11-year-old Angel E. Pacheco and his 12-year-old sister, America D. Pacheco, were found dead inside a home that had been set on fire on Pine Meadows Lane off Black Oak Ridge Road in Taylorsville. The sheriff said their mother, 38-year-old Maria Calderon, was also killed at the home and detectives believe her body was dumped in the Catawba River.

Wolfe previously admitted to going to a home with Avilez, where she told investigators he killed two people inside, and she ran over a third person who tried to run from the home. New court documents say Wolfe recanted a confession she gave back in 2019 when she was 16-years old.

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Defense attorneys say Avilez and Wolfe were at a party in Catawba County at the time the fire was set. They say cell phone tower records corroborate their whereabouts.

Avilez was in the country illegally when the crimes were allegedly committed, authorities said.

We’ll update this article with more information on the bond hearing when it’s available.

(VIDEO: Manhunt underway after homeowner shot in Alexander County)

Manhunt underway after homeowner shot in Alexander County

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