Boyfriend, 46, charged with murder of London mum whose body was found in shallow grave 6,000 miles away in Peru
THE BOYFRIEND of a London mum who was found dead in a shallow grave while on a dream holiday in Peru has been charged with her murder.
Karla Xiomara Zelaya Godoy, a 36-year-old Spanish-Honduran national, went missing at the end of September during a trip with partner Jorge Garay to visit his family.
Peruvian police have confirmed the mum-of-one was strangled to death, in Carabayllo, North of Lima.
The mum, who was living with her partner in Dartford at the time of her murder, was found wrapped in a blue plastic sheet after cops received a chilling tip-off.
Jorge Garay, 46, of Hythe Street, Dartford, was charged by Kent and Essex police with the murder of 36-year-old Karla Godoy in Lima between September 21 and October 2.
Garay was arrested in London on Saturday with assistance from the Metropolitan Police Service.
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The Crown Prosecution Service gave authorisation for him to be charged on Sunday.
A Kent Police spokesperson said: "Officers are continuing to work closely with the Peruvian authorities as part of the ongoing investigation."
Garay appeared in Folkstone Magistrate Court today and spoke via an interpreter to confirm his name, age and address - but did not enter a plea.
The couple visited various tourist hotspots in Peru, including Machu Picchu and the capital Lima, and shared pictures of their dream trip on a WhatsApp group.
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Karla reportedly last spoke to her mum on September 22 while she was in a taxi just north of Lima.
She told her she would be heading to Spain the next day - but she was never heard from again.
Cops in Peru launched an investigation into her disappearance on October 3 - 11 days - initially believing she had been kidnapped.
But her body was later found in a shallow grave with police reportedly taking more than 10 hours to recover the remains.
Karla's boss has paid tribute to the mum-of-one, describing her as a "beautiful soul" who "brought sunshine into everyone’s life with her carefree spirit and her loving nature".
The company's chief executive Mary-Jane Pettit said: "Her heart was so full of love for her daughter and family.
"Karla will be sadly missed and her friends and work family are beside themselves with grief.
"Our love and prayers are with Karla’s family at this very sad time."
The company boss said she and her team were told on 4 October that Karla had vanished.
Within minutes they worked out they could use an app which they normally use to keep in touch with remote workers to try and find her.
Sales executive Sean Coleman got in touch with the software's publishers, Connecteam, and alerted cops in the UK and various embassies.
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Karla's body was later found a short distance from her last known location on the app.
The company is now for Karla's eight-year-old daughter, hoping to stump up £10,000 for the little girl.
