2 American men of Rhode Island charged with murder of pregnant Hispanic woman

Grand jury indicts Gary Gromkiewicz, 35, and Michael Lambert, 46 for the murder of pregnant woman 34-year-old Leila Duarte Da Luz found in Carbuncle Pond

By Edward Era Barbacena 

Police arrested two white  men Tuesday accused of killing a pregnant Hispanic woman and dumping her body in an icy Coventry pond last winter.

Gary Gromkiewicz, 35, of Lincoln, and Michael Lambert, 46, of Pawtucket, are both charged with murder and conspiracy.

The woman’s body was found by an angler at Carbuncle Pond in December. Detectives identified the victim, 34-year-old Leila Duarte Da Luz, nearly a week after her body was discovered thanks to a missing persons report filed out of Brockton.

Investigators confirmed Gromkiewicz was the father of Da Luz’s unborn baby and Lambert is a “known associate” of his.

Both Gromkiewicz and Lambert have previously been convicted in unrelated cases. Detectives said that, at the time of Da Luz’s death, Gromkiewicz was on probation from a 2015 assault, while Lambert was out on parole after serving time for a 1995 murder.

Detectives remained tight-lipped since Da Luz’s body was first discovered, but explained that the extensive investigation required “a massive amount of time and effort.” Investigators executed 53 search warrants, conducted numerous witness interviews and closely analyzed technical data and evidence, according to police.

Lambert is currently incarcerated at the ACI for violating his parole, while Gromkiewicz is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday.