DORAVILLE, Ga. — A DeKalb County judge denied bond Monday for two suspects charged in the murder of a taxi driver who was reported missing in 2025.
Jose Mendoza is charged with felony murder, concealing the death of another and second-degree hijacking of a motor vehicle, Channel 2’s Michael Seiden reported.
Prosecutors said Mendoza and Veronica Velasco were passengers in a taxi driven by 68-year-old Shaowei Zhou when, for reasons still under investigation, Mendoza allegedly strangled the driver.
Authorities said Mendoza and Velasco then hid Zhou’s body and fled in his car. Velasco is charged with one count of concealing the death of another.
Prosecutors did not specify the relationship between the two suspects but noted Velasco is the mother of a 4-year-old child and is pregnant with a second child.
A third suspect was also arrested. Prosecutors announced in court that Alan Reto-Ullien is charged with theft by receiving stolen property. Investigators allege Mendoza and Velasco contacted Reto-Ullien about selling the victim’s car.
Reto-Ullien’s attorney argued his client is a car broker and was unaware the vehicle was connected to a crime. A judge granted him bond, citing his lack of an extensive criminal history.
The investigation began as a missing person case in December after Zhou’s family reported he was driving from Macon to Doraville but never made it home.
Due to the holiday, Channel 2 Action News was unable to speak with police. Channel 2 has filed an open records request for court documents.
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