Groton man is charged with murder

Groton - Town police have arrested a man who they say killed a woman and then stuffed her body in a freezer inside a house on Gold Star Highway.

Luis F. Otero, 49, of 1184 Gold Star Highway was charged with murder on Monday. He is being held on a $2 million bond pending his arraignment today in New London Superior Court.

Police did not identify the victim or say how she died. Madeline Brisson rents the house, but police would not say whether she may have been the victim. Police said they are not looking for anyone else who lived in the house.

About 10:20 Sunday night, a man came in to the Groton City Police Department lobby and reported an "unusual incident" in the Town of Groton. The city dispatcher and shift commander gave the information to town police and detained the man until town officers arrived.

Groton town police searched 1184 Gold Star Highway and found the body in the freezer. An autopsy is scheduled for either today or Wednesday.

Dominick Ceravolo, who owns the house, said there is a chest freezer in the basement that is large enough to hold a body. Police would not say where the freezer was located in the house.

Police Lt. Steven Sinagra would not say whether the person who went to the Groton City police was Otero but said Otero did make contact with them at some point.

Sinagra said the killing appeared to be a case of domestic violence. He did not say how Otero knew the victim.

The home at 1184 Gold Star Highway is on a hill, next to Mr. Mulch Landscaping Services and Bob's Auto, and is not clearly visible from the road. Directly behind it is Ceravolo's Auto, a used-car dealership.

James Brown, who owes a plumbing business in Gales Ferry, said he was at the house last Monday to check on a problem with the well and saw Brisson and her boyfriend.

Brown said he did not notice anything out of the ordinary. He said he doesn't remember the man's name, but said the man told him that he was originally from Texas and that Brisson was out of work.

Brisson used to own Puritan Wash & Dry in Mystic.

Ceravolo said he went to the house on Friday to talk to Brisson because she was behind on rent. No one answered the door, but Ceravolo said about 15 minutes later her pickup truck was not in the yard.

Ceravolo returned to the house the next day and found the inner door was open. When he knocked, a man he didn't know answered. He said he noticed the man hanging around the house about a week or so ago.

"I asked about Madeline and he said that she went away for a couple of days," Ceravolo said. "He was as calm as can be but he gave me a weird feeling. I was going to go inside today (Monday) if I didn't hear from her."

Joyce Ceravolo, Dominick's wife, added that her son saw Brisson's chocolate Labrador running loose in the yard on Friday, which was rare because the dog was always with Brisson.

"I never met her," Ceravolo said of Brisson. "She paid her rent on time until recently."

Sinagra said he had no information on the dog.

Brisson's former business has been closed since the fall, said Myles Meader, who collected rent and managed the building.

Meader said Brisson had fallen on hard times recently. He said about a year ago she broke her foot in a motorcycle accident and then underwent an operation. Brisson lost a good portion of her business, he said, because she was unable to pick up and deliver laundry for area hotels, restaurants and charter boats.

Day staff writer Michael Naughton contributed to this report.