Police have charged a man in New Jersey in connection with the murder of his ex-girlfriend. Gregory Mallard, 35, is accused of killing the mother of his two daughters, Norelis Mendoza, 32. The mother of two was reported missing on Mother’s Day, and her body was discovered on the side of a road four days later, near the Jersey City-Bayonne border. At the time of the discovery, police considered the death suspicious.
Mallard was allegedly a gang member and served time in prison for aggravated manslaughter in 2008, NJ.com reported. Despite knowing about Mallard’s dark past, Mendoza entered into a relationship with the man who is now accused of killing her.
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Mendoza was last seen alive at her mother’s home on May 13.
NJ.com reported that Mendoza dropped off one of her children at her mother’s home on Saturday, May 13. The other daughter was with Mallard’s family on Saturday. Geovanni Molina, Mendoza’s cousin, told the outlet that the family became worried when Mendoza didn’t return home on Sunday. They soon assumed she had been with Mallard the night before.
Family and friends desperately tried to find Mendoza.
As word spread on social media, people tried to find the missing mother. Loved ones sent prayers, held vigils, and searched. As soon as police discovered her body, people began to point fingers at Mallard.
ABC 7 reported that police said the death was suspicious, and family and friends felt that the father of her children had something to do with her death.
Mallard had been in prison for killing someone once before.
NJ.com reported that Mallard was a member of the 52 Hoover Street Crips gang and was charged with the murder of Lawrence Robertson in 2008. The two were allegedly involved in a gang dispute when Mallard killed Robertson. He spent more than 10 years in prison, from February 2009 to June 2020, according to court records obtained by the outlet.
Supporters of Mendoza’s family celebrated her life.
Mourners gathered for a candlelight vigil honoring the slain mother. They have also created a GoFundMe to help raise money for Mendoza’s daughters. It has raised $40,000 of a $50,000 goal so far.
“The family is finding solace that she is now with God," the text for the fundraiser reads. "Our beloved Norelis found passion in helping others and dedicated her career to the medical field. Her smile was infectious, She was a beacon of light and would help anyone she could. We are left with her beautiful daughters and will raise them with her legacy of love and kindness."
"They are one and three years old and need all the love and support they can get. She enjoyed being a mom and did everything for her daughters During this whole ordeal her daughters have cried for her everyday. This has been a senseless act of violence and her girls have been ripped from having their mom on this earth with them. We are all beyond devastated and suffering."
The post concludes, "Rest in paradise Beautiful Angel we will take it from here with everyone’s help."
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Few details are available at this time.
Police are not releasing details about how Mendoza died and say the investigation is ongoing. Mallard was charged with a bevy of crimes, according to a news release from the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office. He is charged with first-degree murder, unlawful possession of a weapon, possession of a weapon for an illegal purpose, failure to dispose of human remains lawfully, desecration of human remains, hindering an investigation, and tampering with evidence.
He is currently in custody in Somerset County. Police are investigating the death as an act of domestic violence, police reported.
If you or someone you know has been the victim of domestic abuse, you can find help and support at DVIS.org, the National Domestic Abuse Hotline at 1-800-799-7233, or by contacting your local women's shelter domesticshelters.org.
