A Bay Area man fatally stabbed a woman and posted video of it on Facebook, police say

SAN MATEO, Calif. (AP) — A man allegedly stabbed a woman to death in the San Francisco Bay Area on Wednesday and then posted a video of the slaying to Facebook, authorities said.

The footage helped police track down the suspect, who was later identified as 39-year old Mark Mechikoff. He was arrested about 30 miles (48 kilometers) south of where the victim was found dead in a San Mateo apartment complex.

“While the motive for stabbing the victim is still under investigation, we do know Mechikoff mercilessly filmed the last moments of the victim’s life and posted the video to Facebook, then fled the area,” San Mateo police said in a statement.

Prosecutors identified the victim as Claribel Estrella. The San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office on Friday charged Mechikoff with a single count of murder with enhancements for inflicting great bodily injury and the use of a knife.

He appeared in court but did not enter a plea. His arraignment was postponed for a week while his court-appointed attorney is chosen, District Attorney Stephen Wagstaffe said in an email.

Mechikoff knew the victim but the extent of their relationship was unclear and the motive was under investigation, the district attorney said.

The stabbing was first reported to the Nye County Sheriff’s Office in Nevada when a caller said she saw video of it on Facebook. The sheriff’s office “pinged” the phone number associated with the Facebook page and traced it to a large San Mateo apartment complex.

It was Mechikoff’s cellphone and his Facebook page and the video apparently has been taken down, the district attorney said.

Officers went door-to-door at the San Mateo apartment complex and found Estrella nearly three hours later inside a unit, authorities said.

Mechikoff was arrested two hours later in San Jose.