NEILLSVILLE, WI (WSAU) — A Clark County Judge has denied a request to move the homicide and stalking case against Jesus Conteras-Perez to a new venue.
Court records show Judge Daniel S Diehn denied the request on Tuesday. The defense had cited media coverage of the case as a reason for requesting the change.
Diehn then scheduled another status conference for February 17th. No trial date has been set.
The 41-year-old faces charges of stalking, hiding a corpse, and first-degree homicide. All of those charges carry a domestic abuse modifier. He has pled not guilty to all charges and faces a mandatory life sentence for the homicide count alone.
Contreras Perez is accused of killing Cassandra Ayon and hiding her body, which has yet to be recovered. The two were said to have been in an abusive relationship, and she had reportedly told friends she felt threatened by him.
Ayon has not been seen since October of 2020. Since then there’s been no activity on her cell phone or bank account, and family members say there’s been no indication that she has left the country.
