VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) – A Virginia Beach woman has been sentenced to 31 years in prison after murdering her boyfriend in 2020 and hiding his body in a car.

Melissa Diaz (Photo Courtesy: Office of the Commonwealth’s Attorney)

According to a news release, 45-year-old Melissa Diaz was found guilty of second-degree murder, use of a firearm in the commission of a felony, conceal a dead body, and physically defiling a dead human body.

The charges stem from an incident on February 5, 2020, at the Red Roof Inn on Ballard Court. Court documents show that the Commonwealth’s evidence proves that Diaz shot and killed her boyfriend, Steven Wynn.

After the shooting, officials say Diaz, her friend and two other people she encountered in the hotel parking helped move Wynn’s body into Diaz’s car after she told them the body was a grandfather clock. One of the people who helped move the body questioned the situation and left a message for the hotel management.

Diaz was arrested on February 9 and Wynn’s body was located in her car. Diaz admitted to police that she killed Wynn and that she was posting fake messages on his social media to make it seem that he was alive.

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