A San Diego County Superior Court judge ordered a former Santa Maria man to stand trial for charges related to the death of a Guadalupe woman two years ago.

German Armando LunaSalazar, 46, has been charged with one count of murder and a special allegation or sentencing enhancement.

Leyva Elizabeth Oregel Garcia, 32, of Guadalupe died in what San Diego police labeled a homicide after she went missing during the summer of 2023. Family referred to LunaSalazar as her ex-husband.

After a preliminary hearing, a judge this week held LunaSalazar to answer to the charges. 

The preliminary hearing spells out the evidence in a criminal case to determine whether a defendant should stand trial on the charges.

The criminal complaint alleged he used a vacuum cleaner cord to kill the mother of two on July 1, 2023.

On July 2, 2023, family members reported Garcia missing after she left with the man they called her ex-husband to clean offices in Paso Robles a day earlier and never returned home.

Just before 12:30 a.m. on July 4, 2023, a caller alerted San Diego police dispatchers about what appeared to be a body inside a vehicle parked in a lot on the 4400 block of Camino De La Plaza in the San Ysidro neighborhood of San Diego.

LunaSalazar was last seen leaving the area on foot, and possibly fled to Mexico.

He turned himself in at the border on Aug. 19, 2023, and was arrested at that time, according to San Diego police .

An arraignment hearing on the information is scheduled for April 23 in San Diego County. 

On Friday, LunaSalazar remained in the custody of the San Diego County Jail without bail.