Story by Ethan
On February 14th, 2025, the arrest of Henry Pacheco, age 44, was announced by Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez. Henry Pacheco was charged with second-degree Murder, second-degree Arson, third-degree Arson, and Petite Larceny. The arrest and charges against Henry Pacheco were a result of an investigation handled by detectives from the New York Police Department.
According to the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office, the victim, 25-year old Lorelise “Lorena Xtravaganza” Escalera, received several calls from Henry Pacheco during the early hours of May 12th, 2012. Shortly after approximately 2:20 a.m. Henry Pacheco was seen on surveillance footage entering the building where Lorelise Escalera resides on the third floor at 47 Furman Avenue in Bushwick, New York. Footage captured Henry Pacheco leaving the building about an hour after he was first seen entering, surveillance also showing smoke coming from the third floor. By 4 a.m. the building was filled with smoke and fire, however while other residents were able to escape Lorelise Escalera was found dead at the scene on her bed. The medical examiner claimed Lorelise Escalera was dead before the fire began, and her death was ruled as a homicide. The fire marshal determined that the fire originated from the bed Lorelise Escalera owned and was found dead on, and that the fire did not begin accidentally. After a search of Lorelise Escalera’s phone it was noted that she received several calls after she was pronounced dead, one of the calls coming from someone who knew Henry Pacheco but not the victim. Henry Pacheco did confirm a year later that he was the individual in the aforementioned surveillance images from the early morning of May 12th, 2012.
The Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office stated that the charges against Henry Pacheco are merely accusations, and the defendant is presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law.
