A landlord is speaking out, after police say they found a woman murdered inside the home he owns on the east side of Sioux Falls on February 20.
Police are still investigating what happened at 331 North Cliff Avenue.
A 37-year-old woman was found dead in the home, and 33-year-old Garrett Solorzano is charged with first degree murder. Landlord Roger Kelly is still trying to make sense of it all.
“Shock, disbelief, and just surprise. I don't think anyone thinks that... Anyone expects something like that to happen," Kelly said.
Kelly said he randomly drove to the house to pick up a trailer. He was greeted by police cars and crime tape, and told he couldn't go inside.
"The police, just by the way they were reacting and the look on their faces, I knew that at least one person was deceased," he said.
Shortly after, he got a call from another tenant living in the home that confirmed his worries. He says he never had any serious problems with the suspect or victim.
"I never seen any anger between the two of them,” he said, “I wouldn't call him a cheery guy, but he didn't seem like a violent person either."
Kelly doesn't usually form close bonds with tenants, but he says he grew fond of the victim when he was doing renovations on the house.
"She just had a great personality, she smiled, and she was always bright and cheery. Even when I'm tearing the place apart trying to fix it, she was okay with it," Kelly said.
He said his heart aches for her and the suspect behind bars
Now, he's focusing on getting the home back on its feet. Although he's required to warn potential buyers that someone was murdered in the home for the next ten years, he doesn't think it will affect business.