The Little Machete Murders

(Please note: I cannot find photos of the fifth suspect. In photo: Colon, Strickland, Lucas, Arbelo)

Five students attending a Job Corps program lured another teen, 17-year-old Jose Arnaya Guardado, to a wooded area where they'd dug a grave and hid a machete. The five teens attacked Jose, who desperately fought for his life. The teens kicked and punched Jose repeatedly, then began smashing him in the face with the machete until it caved in. Jose was thrown into the grave and buried alive. Jose's brother found him deceased several days later. His face was so badly disfigured, Jose's brother barely recognized him.

After brutally murdering Jose, two members of the group, Desiray Strickland and her boyfriend, Kaheem Arbelo, had sex near the grave as a celebratory action. The other teens burned their clothing and other items hoping to destroy evidence of their participation in the crime, then returned to the Job Corps site where they lived.

All five suspects were arrested:

• Kaheem Arbelo, 18
• Desiray Strickland, 19
• Joseph Cabrera, 20
• Christian Colon, 19
• Jonathan Lucas, 18

Described by family as a hard-working, shy kid, Jose, his parents, and his five siblings had relocated from El Salvador to Miami in search of a better life. Jose never bothered anyone. Instead, he studied hard, hoping one day he could work as a mechanic and earn money to keep his family afloat.

Kaheem and the other four murderers had criminal records before arriving at Job Corps. Around the campus, people knew them as bullies. Kaheem and Jose were roommates. Kaheem immediately began bullying his roomie, stealing money and his belongings.

According to Kaheem, the group had planned the June 2015 murder for at least two weeks because Jose allegedly owed him money over drugs he fronted him. Kaheem claimed Jose owed him $200 cash.

What Happened in This Case?

The State of Florida sought the death penalty for the ringleader, Arbelo, but took that sentence off the table for the remaining suspects. This left them facing up to life in prison.

Police say three of the suspects confessed to the murders. Strickland became belligerent during questioning, screaming at the cops saying she was not involved with the murder. View the interrogation video here:

The Miami Herald reported that Arbelo was offered a plea deal to testify against the other suspects, but he rejected the offer. The plea deal would’ve taken the death penalty off the table and put him behind bars for as few as 10 years.

Shortly thereafter, the case was closed to the public.

An appeal court judge wrote that the already-disclosed gruesome details ‘have apparently honed the media’s appetite for more.’

In 2017, Florida Circuit Court Judge, Dava Tunis, ruled that pre-trial hearings for the defendants should be closed, barring the public and journalists from additional information. TV station WPLG and The Miami Herald asked the District Court of Appeal to review the decision, but they sided with the lower court, citing the news media had an appetite for gruesome details and the trials would be closed.

Therefore, we have no access to information concerning the aftermath of this case.

Case law allows court proceedings to be closed in situations when the court determines that closure “is necessary to prevent a serious and imminent threat to the administration of justice.”