Queens Mother Found Shot in Shallow Grave; Partner Arrested for Murder

Seraphina Pereira, 35, a mother of four from Queens, had been missing for several days when her body was discovered Saturday night near Beach 58th Street and Almeda Avenue in the Edgemere neighborhood. A medical examiner determined she had been shot in the head, neck, and chest, and ruled her death a homicide. On Monday, police arrested Rogelio Lozano-Garita, 26, who was in a relationship with Pereira and had fathered two of her children. He faces multiple charges, including murder, criminal possession of a weapon, concealment of a human corpse, and tampering with physical evidence. By Tuesday, crime scene investigators were at Pereira's apartment, located just blocks from where her body was found. Her sister-in-law, Brenda Gorczynski, described Pereira as fun, kind, and a loving mother. "Sera would never leave her kids," Gorczynski said, adding that she is heartbroken for Pereira's children. Gorczynski noted that Pereira had two sons with her own brother, who died in 2019, and two children with Lozano-Garita. "There is no way any of us can ever replace their mom," she said.