TULARE COUNTY – Prosecutors recently obtained a guilty verdict against a 44-year-old man who they claim killed his wife, who went missing nearly a decade ago.
On July 2, the Tulare County District Attorney’s Office announced that a jury found Francisco Valdivia guilty of first-degree murder and felony arson in the death of his wife, Cecilia Cabrera. He is scheduled to be sentenced on September 25 and could face life in prison.
According to prosecutors, Valdivia and Cabrera married in Fresno in 2008 but never lived together or had children. According to multiple people close to the couple, the “marriage was for immigration purposes.”
According to the district attorney’s office, the defendant was in a relationship with Rosalina Lopez, 46, and the couple lived in Goshen with their four children. Valdivia grew close to Cabrera over time and allegedly paid some of her bills and rent.
Cabrera picked up the defendant on the night of June 8, 2016, to celebrate her upcoming birthday at Tachi Palace. They allegedly gambled and then left shortly after 12 a.m.
Several hours later, the Tulare County Fire Department responded to a burning vehicle in Traver and discovered it was Cabrera’s. Her family reported her missing, but Cabrera has never been located.
According to the district attorney’s office, Valdivia deleted phone calls to his wife. During the interview, detectives noticed scratches on his arm.
Valdivia reportedly spent the remainder of the evening at home after Cabrera drove away. However, authorities said Valdivia’s cell phone data did not back up his claim. His phone was reportedly found near the burning vehicle between 4 and 5 a.m.
Prosecutors say Valdivia once “threatened to kill Cabrera if she left him or began a relationship with another man.”
Lopez pleaded no contest in December 2020 to being an accessory after the fact and received three years in county jail.
