Missing woman had head injuries

A 20-year-old Henderson woman who disappeared on New Year's Eve died from "blunt force injuries of the head due to assault," a spokeswoman with the Clark County coroner's office said Wednesday.

Mariela Moreno's body was found Feb. 29 near Sunset Park. Authorities said she was a victim of homicide, but no one has been arrested in the case.

During a brief telephone interview Wednesday, a family friend translated for Moreno's older sister Monica, who speaks Spanish. The friend said Monica Moreno wants to believe her sister died accidentally.

"She can't explain to herself how someone could have done this to her," said the friend, Karla Morales. "She just wishes that in the last moments of her life that she didn't suffer."

A week after Mariela Moreno's body was found, she was officially identified through fingerprints. At the time, Clark County Coroner Michael Murphy said the cause and manner of death were "pending further investigation."

The same day, Henderson police spokesman Todd Rasmussen said detectives had made "substantial progress" on the case and were optimistic that they would be able to bring justice to the victim's family. On Wednesday, Rasmussen said he had no new information to share.

Mariela Moreno lived with her sister and brother-in-law and the couple's two children at 353 Washoe Way, near Pecos and Warm Springs roads.

"There's moments when they think it's all a dream, a nightmare," Morales said. "And we miss her a lot, because she was a good girl who never did anything bad to anyone."

Monica Moreno said she has two other sisters and a brother who live in Mexico, where all the siblings were raised by their grandparents.

She said Mariela, the youngest, came to the United States five years ago and attended Silverado High School. She was working as a waitress at a Mexican restaurant in Henderson before her disappearance.

Monica Moreno, 28, said she and her children left for Mexico on Dec. 20, the last day she saw Mariela, and returned Jan. 8. Mariela called Monica in Mexico on New Year's Eve.

"She was really happy, because she was going to go and celebrate," Monica Moreno said through her friend.

The two sisters talked every day after Monica left for Mexico. Monica's husband, Jarl Kongsrud, last saw Mariela on New Year's Eve as she left their home. Police said she was headed to a New Year's Eve function at the Firefly on Paradise, a tapas restaurant and bar on Paradise Road.

Mariela Moreno's boyfriend told police he dropped her off at her house about 4:30 a.m. but did not watch her go inside. He also said he saw a strange car in the neighborhood as he was leaving.

No one saw Mariela Moreno alive again. She failed to show up for work and missed a Jan. 2 court date involving a domestic violence charge against her ex-boyfriend.

On March 7, Rasmussen told the Review-Journal that Mariela Moreno's boyfriend was in Mexico, but the officer said police had interviewed him soon after the woman's disappearance. Rasmussen would not identify the boyfriend or ex-boyfriend, and he named no suspects.

Construction workers found the victim's body under bushes near Tomiyasu Lane and Maule Avenue, a few blocks from her home.

Monica Moreno said detectives have been keeping the family informed of all aspects of their investigation but have asked her not to share details with the news media.