DeBary man indicted on murder charge in disappearance of wife, University High teacher Maria Gaminde

A Volusia County grand jury has indicted a DeBary man on a charge of first-degree murder in the death of his wife, Maria Gaminde, a University High School teacher whose family reported her missing in January 2024 and whose body has not been found. Epifanio IX Ramos Gaminde, 48, is being held without bond at the Volusia County Branch Jail and is also subject to an immigration detainer from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, according to the Volusia Sheriff's Office. He is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.

Investigators say Gaminde told relatives and detectives that his wife had left voluntarily for the Philippines or Japan, and that messages and credit card purchases made overseas in her name were part of an effort, directed by him, to make it appear she was still alive. Sheriff Mike Chitwood laid out the case at a news conference Tuesday, Oct. 27, as deputies searched the couple's DeBary property.

Last seen at Magic Kingdom

Maria Gaminde taught at University High School in Orange City. Her last confirmed activity, according to investigators, was a Dec. 16, 2023, visit to Walt Disney World's Magic Kingdom with her children; detectives confirmed that her fingerprint was used to enter the park. Four days later, investigators said, her husband sent her a text asking where she was. After that, communication from her stopped, and messages purportedly from her began arriving from overseas.

The timeline below is drawn from the sheriff's office, the indictment and published reports.

The indictment alleges that between Dec. 19 and Dec. 31, 2023, Gaminde killed his wife with premeditation, according to The Daytona Beach News-Journal, which reviewed the charging document. The newspaper reported that jail records also list charges of driving with a suspended or revoked license and failure to carry motor vehicle liability insurance.

Messages from overseas

For months after she vanished, relatives received sporadic texts and emails that appeared to come from Maria Gaminde, and her credit cards were used for purchases abroad. Detectives became suspicious because the communications did not seem authentic, the sheriff's office said. Investigators found no flight records showing she ever left the United States, and no financial trail suggesting she was alive.

"There's no financial trail. There's nothing that would indicate that Maria is alive," Chitwood said at Tuesday's news conference.

With help from the FBI on international legal issues, a Volusia detective and a prosecutor from the State Attorney's Office for the 7th Judicial Circuit traveled to the Philippines, the sheriff's office said, and investigators also coordinated with partners in Japan. There they interviewed Gaminde's niece. According to Chitwood, the niece admitted making purchases and sending communications designed to make Maria appear alive, all at the defendant's direction. Investigators allege that Gaminde emailed the niece his wife's documents, including her driver's license and credit cards, and told her what to do with them.

WFTV reported that the niece is cooperating with investigators and is not facing charges. Investigators said the goal of the scheme was to create the false impression that Maria was alive, well and deliberately avoiding contact with her family.

Chitwood questioned the story Gaminde had told about his wife leaving. "What mother of a five-year-old or 11-year-old just disappears?" he said. He also said of Gaminde's accounts to detectives: "Every interview he has given us has just been a lie."

The search of the DeBary property

On Tuesday, investigators searched the couple's home in DeBary, focusing on an area behind the house where concrete appeared to have been added. A neighbor told detectives that Gaminde did extensive work in the backyard around the time his wife disappeared, according to the sheriff's office. Published reports described deputies digging out a backyard fountain at the home.

Chitwood was cautious about what the search might produce. "We may get lucky, we may not get lucky," he said. As of the latest reports, Maria Gaminde's remains had not been recovered, and the sheriff's office said it would release more information in a future update.

Arrest, custody and background

Gaminde was already in custody when the grand jury's indictment was announced, having been stopped for allegedly driving without a valid license, according to published reports. He has not made statements to investigators, WFTV reported. The sheriff's office said he is being held on an ICE immigration detainer in addition to the murder charge.

The couple came to the United States around 2008 and have three young sons. The children were with their father when he was arrested and have since been placed with Maria's family. Chitwood said the boys had been kept from contact with their mother's side of the family. Investigators also told reporters that Gaminde had previously been arrested twice on domestic violence allegations, and that he had acknowledged the couple was having marital problems.

Prosecuting a case without a body

The case will be handled by the State Attorney's Office for Florida's 7th Judicial Circuit, which covers Volusia, Flagler, Putnam and St. Johns counties. State Attorney R.J. Larizza said the absence of remains will not stop the prosecution.

"We're fully prepared to move forward without the body."

Larizza added: "And I have complete and total confidence in our ability to prosecute this case."

Florida law does not require that a victim's body be recovered to bring or win a murder case, though prosecutors must still prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the person is dead and that the defendant caused the death. In cases like this one, that proof typically rests on circumstantial evidence: the end of a person's normal activity, the absence of any financial or travel records, and evidence of efforts to conceal a death. Here, investigators have pointed to the niece's statements, the lack of any flight records and the overseas card activity.

First-degree murder is a capital felony in Florida, punishable by life in prison or death. The published reports on the indictment did not say whether prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty.

What's next

Gaminde's case now moves into Volusia County circuit court, where he is expected to be arraigned on the indictment and to enter a plea. Deputies said the search for Maria Gaminde's remains is continuing. The immigration detainer means ICE has asked to be notified before any release, though he remains held without bond on the murder charge. The charges are accusations, and Gaminde is presumed innocent unless and until the state proves its case in court.