Authorities suspect domestic violence in death of Ceres woman found in Merced County canal

The death of a 37-year-old Ceres woman whose body was pulled from the Delta-Mendota Canal appears to be caused by domestic violence, the Merced County Sheriff’s Office said Monday.

Carlos Fred Romo, 51, was arrested Thursday on suspicion of felony murder in connection with the death of 37-year-old Sonia Thomas. Thomas’ body was located in the Delta-Mendota Canal near Highway 33 in Santa Nella on Feb. 24, according to authorities. Merced County Sheriff’s Office Detective-Sgt. Clint Landrum said Romo was arrested in Modesto on March 30, shortly before a search warrant was served at a Ceres home shared by Romo and Thomas.

“We believe they were involved in a romantic relationship,” Landrum said.

According to Landrum, investigators believe Thomas’ body entered the canal on Feb. 18.

Landrum said authorities believe the two were involved in some type of altercation accompanied by an assault earlier in the evening that resulted in Thomas suffering substantial injuries that would have required medical attention.

Authorities said it appears it was a domestic violence related assault.

Landrum said investigators believe Thomas died the night of Feb. 18 and it is unknown if she died before her body entered the canal.

“It was apparent that when her body was found that she had sustained some injuries that happened previous to her ending up in the Delta-Mendota Canal and those injuries were substantial,” said Landrum.

According to Landrum, it appears Thomas was beaten and her “injuries were such that if introduced to water, she would have been helpless.”

Landrum said a forensic autopsy revealed Thomas’ injuries would have caused her to be in medical distress.

The Merced County Sheriff’s Office investigations division respond to the the call on Feb. 24 and participated in the recovery of Thomas’ body.

“The injuries that we noticed at that time didn’t appear to be constant with injuries one would receive from being placed in a body of water like that,” Landurm said.

Investigators said it appears she was living with Romo at a Ceres residence. Landrum said multiple items of evidence were recovered as a result of a search at the Ceres home where authorities believe the assault took place.

Landrum said Romo has a violent history and has previously spent time in prison.

“This is a tragic kind of case where somebody with limited options got into a bad situation and might not have felt that they had the ability to get out of it,” said Landrum.

Romo remains in custody in lieu of $1 million bond.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact Detective Danny Ramirez at 209-385-7472.

This story was originally published April 3, 2023 at 12:33 PM.