New charges, warrant details for man accused of killing Jacqueline Torres-Garcia 

NEW BRITAIN, CT (WFSB) - A man accused of murdering his former girlfriend’s 11-year-old daughter appeared in court Tuesday on two new charges related to the case.

Jonatan Nanita faces charges of tampering with evidence and disposal of a body in New Britain.

Nanita has been charged with murdering Jacqueline Torres Garcia in their Farmington home in fall 2024 and disposing of her body behind an abandoned home in New Britain a year later.

Police have charged Jacqueline’s mother, Karla Garcia; Nanita; and Jacqueline’s aunt, Jackelyn Garcia, in connection with the little girl’s death.

According to Nanita’s warrant on these new charges, police say not only did Nanita drop Jacqueline’s remains outside of the abandoned home on Clark Street in New Britain in late September, police say he also helped her mother, Karla Garcia, stuff her body into the tote, back in October 2024, and attempted to cover up the smell with chemicals.

The warrant reveals friends of Nanita’s current girlfriend lead police to Jacqueline’s remains. Those friends told New Britain police, the girlfriend had been talking about Nanita “possibly” moving a body in a tote when she was in the car around September 29-30th.The friends say they asked her to show them the tote, because they thought she might be hallucinating due to alcohol and drug abuse. Those friends then went to the abandoned Clark Street home, where one friend said he removed the cover of the bin, and saw an elbow that we now know belonged to Jacqueline. The friends say they called the police right after, the morning of October 8th.We’ve also learned from the warrant that Nanita and Karla Garcia were not under arrest October 8th, the night they were first questioned. That same night Channel 3 captured video of Garcia being led away in handcuffs.

According to the warrant, at the time of the video, Nanita was in custody being questioned, when Garcia drove up to officers saying she was the one they were looking for. Police say a crowd of about 20-30 people had gathered and “due to the nature of the crime and the crowds on scene, Karla was placed in handcuffs when transported.” In interviews, police say Nanita and Garcia tried to point the finger at each other, but ultimately were both charged with murder. Karla Garcia told police she had starved Jacqueline for two weeks leading up to her death, and Nanita found her dead in her bed. The warrant does not say anything about the circumstances of Nanita’s arrest on October 13th - several days after his first interview.

The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner said she was extremely malnourished, but there were no obvious signs of injury to her body that would have contributed to her death.

During Tuesday’s court hearing, the judge determined these new charges will be transferred to court in Torrington to consolidate with the prior charges that were filed.

Nanita’s attorney asked the judge that he remain in protective custody.

Nanita is being held on $5 million bond for the initial charges. He will appear in court on November 14th for those. Bond for the additional charges was set at $750,000.