Sofia Fermin: Body of missing boyfriend found three months after her arrest for his murder
Matthew Clark vanished after an argument between the couple in Dec. 2023. His body was just found and police seek another man in connection with the crime.
A woman from California has been arrested after police located the body of her boyfriend, who has been missing since 2023.
On March 3, 2025, the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office announced that that they found the remains of 47-year-old Matthew Clark, buried in a shallow grave on a property on U Street in Rio Linda. The body was mummified when they discovered it.
An autopsy confirmed his identity, and found his cause of death to be from five gunshot wounds on his body, CBS reports.
Sofia Fermin, 38, had been Clark’s live-in girlfriend at the time of his disappearance. In Jan. 2024, Clark’s brother called police to report that Matthew had been missing since he and Fermin had an argument in Dec. 2023.
He also voiced his belief that Fermin had something to do with the disappearance, as she had allegedly sold his truck and other property following the argument.
Investigators found the truck in June 2024 in San Joaquin County. After recovering and processing it, the sheriff’s office said that they discovered the fingerprints of a 42-year-old man named Jerry Mulford.
The sheriff’s office said detectives spoke to Mulford sometime after this, who was incarcerated for a separate crime at the time. He told police that Fermin believed Clark to be in a rehabilitation center in California when he disappeared.
According to Tracy News Today, Fermin was arrested on Aug. 22, 2024 after a high speed chase with police. At about 3 p.m. that day, Tracy Police Department (TPD) received an alert from a Flock Automated License Plate Reader (ALPR) notifying them of a stolen vehicle from Stockton that had entered the city limits.
When police located the vehicle and driver on 11th Street and Corral Hollow Road, the driver attempted to flee when police tried to pull the car over. The short high-speed chase ended when police used a Precision Immobilization Technique maneuver to disable the vehicle.
Negotiations with the driver went nowhere. The Tracy PD SWAT team arrived at the scene to use chemical agents and a police K9 to subdue the driver, identified as Sofia Fermin, and take her into custody. She was taken to hospital and treated for minor injuries before being booked into the San Joaquin County jail for charges regarding the stolen vehicle and police chase.
In Sept. 2024, homicide detectives took over the case, according to KCRA. Their investigation led to the belief that Fermin allegedly shot Clark during an argument and revealed where his body may have been hidden.
Detectives searched the Rio Linda property in Dec. 2024 and discovered Clark’s mummified body. They arrested Fermin on Dec. 23 and took her into custody.
Jerry Mulford, however, remains on the loose despite police issuing an arrest warrant for accessory to murder after the fact. Detectives warn that he may have left California. Anyone with knowledge of his whereabouts are urged to call Sacramento County Sheriff's Office at 916-874-5115.
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