Jury in case of killer who suffocated wife, her girls hear about horrific scene

The jury in the death penalty case of Alberto Sierra viewed dozens of gruesome photographs Wednesday that captured how he left his estranged wife and her two young daughters stuffed in a bedroom closet after he suffocated them with a plastic shopping bag.

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Prosecutor Mary Ernst showed jurors the photos as the lead crime scene investigator, Det. Aura Jaen-Rosello, took the stand, detailing how she entered the home in Miami’s Flagami neighborhood and searched for evidence. The testimony was so harrowing that at one point a juror asked for a break.

Sierra, 42, pleaded guilty in August to the murders of his wife, Gladys Machado, 29, and her daughters Julia Padron, 6, and Daniela Padron, 3. The jurors are tasked only with deciding whether Sierra should be condemned to Florida’s Death Row or sentenced to life in prison for the murders.

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When going through the photos, Jaen-Rosello said she documented the bodies and all the injuries they sustained. The bodies of Machado, Julia and Daniela were found beside one another in the closet.

All three victims had injuries, marks and discoloration on their bodies. Sierra tilted his head down throughout Jaen-Rosello’s testimony.

Prosecutors say Sierra snuffed out their lives with a plastic Sedano’s Supermarket bag before raping Machado’s and Julia’s bodies. He then left the family to rot in the home they once all shared.

Julia was found with her face down on a shoe, which left a large imprint, Jaen-Rosello said. She was wearing a tank top with a heart on it. Her legs and underwear were covered in blood. Her sister Daniela was wearing infant-sized clothing.

The girls’ mother was found naked with a rag in her hand. Photos of Machado’s injuries also captured that she had a tattoo of Sierra’s name on her shoulder blade.

Jaen-Rosello testified that she and the crime scene team swabbed the scene for DNA. They were inside the house for hours, leaving at 6:30 a.m. the following day.

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Toward the end of Jaen-Rosello’s testimony, Ernst put on blue latex gloves and opened a brown paper evidence bag. Inside was a Dora the Explorer bedsheet, which Jaen-Rosello said was on one of the girls’ beds.

Near the trash bins outside, investigators discovered a bottle of bleach, Jaen-Rosello said. They also found a paper plate craft that Machado’s son created of his family. On it, he identified Sierra as his father.

Neighbor recounts horrid discovery

The bodies of Machado, Julia and Daniela were discovered by a neighbor on Nov. 13, 2012, three days after they were killed. The neighbor, Sady Saldivar, who lived in an efficiency in Machado’s home, took the stand Tuesday afternoon.

Saldivar said she met Machado while working at the day care center where Machado used to drop off her children, and she later rented to Saldivar the efficiency at her house. While living there, Saldivar met Sierra.

In court, she was shown a photo and identified Sierra, Machado and Machado’s three children.

Saldivar recalled how she started noticing a foul odor, which gradually got stronger, coming from the home. She decided to go inside and discovered the bodies.

She found Machado nude in a bedroom closet. Saldivar wiped away tears when prosecutors played her full 911 call in court.

During the recorded call, Saldivar can be heard frantically pleading for help, telling the operator she had found a body.

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