18-07-2025
'Cold-blooded killer'; grand jury indicts man in slaying of woman in St. Lucie County
ST. LUCIE COUNTY − A grand jury July 9 indicted a man on first-degree murder and other charges following the death in March of Toni Lynn Marie Trabb, 58, of Port St. Lucie, according to the St. Lucie County Sheriff's Office.
Along with the murder charge, Carlos Tito Caban, 52, faces charges of grand theft of a motor vehicle, fraudulent use of a credit card, and criminal use of personal identification following the slaying.
Prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty in the case, according to the Sheriff's Office.
'This guy's a cold-blooded killer as far as I'm concerned, and he is exactly where he needs to be right now,' Sheriff Richard Del Toro said at a July 10 media briefing.
Trabb was found March 24 by cleaning staff at the Best Western hotel, in the 7900 block of South U.S. 1, in a second-floor room. Rescue and sheriff's officials arrived at the scene before Trabb was pronounced dead.
Del Toro said Trabb was found with "severe blunt trauma and ultimately strangled to death." He said Caban checked into the hotel under his name, but used her credit card.
Sheriff's officials on March 25 identified Caban, a sex offender, as 'officially our suspect' following the homicide.
Investigators March 25 were notified by authorities in Tifton, Georgia, that Caban was stopped in Trabb's Toyota Corolla there. Tifton is about 370 miles from Port St. Lucie.
A bulletin was put out for the vehicle, Del Toro said, and police officers coming out of a gym spotted it based on the bulletin and took Caban into custody.
Caban was with another woman.
'Details were later learned from Georgia authorities that the woman that was with Mr. Caban met him in the Orlando, Florida area," Del Toro said. "And he told her at that time he was traveling to New York and she just decided to go along for the ride because she had nothing pretty much better going on.'
Lt. Andrew Bolonka, sheriff's spokesperson, said at the time that Caban faced charges out of Florida related to the conditions of his sex offender status.
According to the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Caban in January 2021 was convicted in Indian River County of sexual battery by an adult on an adult with aggravating circumstances.
He was released from prison in 2023, according to the state Department of Corrections.
Sheriff's officials said a variety of items reportedly were dumped in a field in Georgia, and a person there looked through it and found Trabb's name on some paperwork. That person notified law enforcement officials there.
Trabb's father, Anthony Borello, in an interview at his Port St. Lucie home, said shortly after the slaying that his daughter was a smart, special woman who enjoyed cooking and was 'pretty fluent' in Spanish.
Borello said Trabb was born in New York. She was twice married, and has a daughter, who teaches school, and a son in college, both in the New Jersey area. She has a sister and a half-sister.
Borello said his daughter struggled with alcohol, and that "every now and then she'd fall off.'
Borello said Trabb 'was seeing a lot of' Caban over the past two months before her death.
'First time I met him, I didn't like him,' Borello said. 'Second time I met him, I didn't like him even more.'
Borello said he last saw Trabb March 21, before she left early the next morning as he slept. He assumed it was to meet with Caban, and she texted him over the weekend.
'She said, 'Oh, we're out having a good time, and the beach was nice, and we're gonna get a bite,'' Borello said. 'So, I'm assuming it was this guy.'
Del Toro said his understanding is that Caban and Trabb met on a dating website about a month and a half before the incident occurred.
'He started, according to a friend of Ms. Trabb that had spoken with her before her death, exhibiting some signs of violent behavior towards her,' Del Toro said.
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Del Toro said investigators spoke to Caban, and he was able to see the death penalty was being pursued.
Caban 'basically says you guys pretty much know what happened, and I want an attorney," Del Toro said.
To determine whether capital punishment is warranted, the state is required to identify the aggravating circumstances, or reasons why a sentence of death is legal and appropriate.
Prosecutors cited six statutory aggravators related to Trabb's murder including:
The killing was especially heinous, atrocious, or cruel
The capital felony was committed by a person previously convicted of a felony and under sentence of imprisonment or placed on community control or on felony probation.
The defendant was previously convicted of another capital felony or of a felony involving the use or threat of violence to the person.
The capital felony was committed for pecuniary gain.
The felony was a homicide and was committed in a cold calculated and premeditated manner without any pretense of moral or legal justification.
The capital felony was committed by a person designated as a sexual predator pursuant to (Florida statute) 775.21 or a person previously designated as a sexual Predator who had the sexual predator designation removed.
Prosecutors weigh such aggravators against any potential mitigating evidence, such as substance abuse, neurological troubles or diminished mental health.
(This story has been updated with more information and video)
Will Greenlee is a breaking news reporter for TCPalm. Follow Will on X @OffTheBeatTweet or reach him by phone at 772-267-7926. E-mail him at
This article originally appeared on Treasure Coast Newspapers: Sex offender charged with murder in death of 58-year-old woman
