Back in 2015, a 51-year-old Texas millionaire named Jake Merendino was brutally murdered, his body found near the small town of Rosarito. His throat had been slit, and he had been stabbed more than 20 times.
As the investigation into this tragedy unfolded over the past couple years, the story has become even more twisted.
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Merendino talked about retiring to Mexico with his 23-year-old boyfriend David Meza, whom he met when he hired him as an escort in San Diego in 2013. The millionaire’s body was found just two days after he closed on a $273,000 condo in Rosarito.
Meza was immediately the top suspect in the case and, as PEOPLE reports, his story is where things really began to twist and turn.
As it turns out, Meza wasn’t only the boyfriend of an older millionaire. He had an entire second life that he kept secret.
Double Life
Meza, an online escort and gay porn actor, was actually engaged to Taylor Langston, a pregnant woman living in San Diego.
After Merendinoย was found dead and the police began investigating Meza, Langston was questioned about the night of the murder. She lied to the police about Meza’sย whereabouts.
Later on, when Mezaย was found guilty of foreign domestic violence resulting in murder and conspiracy to obstruct justice, Langston ended up pleading guilty as well. She is currently serving a 21-month sentence for obstructing justice.
While Langston began as Meza’sย ally, the case ended up turning the two against one another.
Meza’s Behavior
One of Meza’sย former colleagues, Gary Blumenthal, spoke on his behalf, saying that he wasn’t the kind of person who would commit such a heinous crime.
Langston’s attorney, Don Levin, told quite a different story. According to the lawyer, Mezaย had a dark side.
“There was physical, emotional and sexual abuse,” Levin said. “She thought this was the love of her life, her forever partner. She had no idea he was prostituting himself or starring in gay porn films.”
Merendino’sย friends also spoke out against Meza, saying that he had likely been out to get money from the beginning.
The Condo
In December of 2014, a few months before he was murdered, Merendino made Mezaย the beneficiary of his condo, writing a brand new will on a piece of hotel paper. He also left Mezaย all of his fortune.
This is how authorities caught on to Meza’s plan.
Not long after the murder, the young man tried to cash in on the handwritten will, and lied about his relationship with Merendino.
Evidence suggests that Mezaย was trying to get Merendino’sย fortune in order to care for his family, so he killed the man that loved him.ย
Although he maintains his innocence, Mezaย is expected to be sentenced to 20 years in prison.
