MADISON (WKOW) --- Gerson Blas Noe, a person of interest in the death of a woman in Sun Prairie, will remain in custody after the court commissioner set his cash bail at $500,000.
Blas Noe is in custody for providing false information to law enforcement during a missing persons investigation. Police say he is the last person to have been seen with 27-year-old Ingrid Valverde-Ponce.
Valverde-Ponce was reported missing on Sunday. Deputies found a body matching her description in a field on Tuesday.
During the bail hearing, a family member of Valverde-Ponce asked the judge to set a high cash bail, one that Blas Noe would not be able to pay. She urged the judge to hold Blas Noe in custody.
"He needs to be held until this investigation is complete so we can see who is guilty because he is the last person who saw my sister alive," she said.
She also requested that Blas Noe not have contact with her and the rest of Valverde-Ponce's family out of fear he may threaten to hurt them.
Assistant Dane County District Attorney William Brown told the court commissioner, due to the condition the body was found in, the autopsy process is delayed.
"Unfortunately, due to where the victim's body was left and when it was left, the body is frozen," Brown said. "An autopsy is necessary for the state to determine what charges may be appropriate against this defendant and the level of seriousness of the charge that he's booked in on currently."
Brown claims Blas Noe took significant steps to hide any evidence during the investigation, including throwing away the victim's clothing that was soaked in isopropyl alcohol.
Brown says it appears the defendant and the victim were in an ongoing romantic relationship. Surveillance footage captured Blas Noe's car driving toward a remote area in Sun Prairie. Brown also revealed the defendant is in the United States illegally.
According to Brown, Blas Noe tried to run from police during the investigation. The court ordered Blas Noe to not contact Valverde-Ponce's family. He is set to appear in court again on Tuesday.
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