Pawling Man Pleads Guilty to Murder of Connecticut Taxi Driver

PUTNAM COUNTY, N.Y. — A Pawling man has pleaded guilty to murder in connection with the death of a Connecticut taxi driver whose body was found in Putnam County last year.

According to Putnam County District Attorney Robert V. Tendy, 28-year-old Santos Vasquez-Ramirez pleaded guilty to Murder in the Second Degree in the killing of Aurelio Orbez of Danbury, Connecticut.

Investigators said Orbez, a taxi driver, was reported missing by his family on Dec. 1, 2025. Authorities later determined that Orbez had picked up Vasquez-Ramirez near the Brewster Metro-North station that day.

A few days later, Orbez’s taxi was discovered abandoned near the Purdy Train Station. His body was recovered from the Croton Falls Reservoir on Dec. 6, 2025.

According to prosecutors, Vasquez-Ramirez admitted that Orbez was killed during a physical altercation inside the cab that stemmed from a dispute over a previously unpaid fare.

District Attorney Tendy praised the extensive multi-agency investigation that included surveillance footage, license plate reader data, witness interviews, and other evidence that led to the arrest and guilty plea.

Authorities also stated that Vasquez-Ramirez was in the United States illegally and was wanted on an outstanding warrant related to a DWI arrest in Dutchess County from August 2025 after allegedly failing to appear in court.

Vasquez-Ramirez is scheduled to be sentenced in August and is expected to receive a sentence of 21 years to life in state prison.