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But the 29-year-old mother's American dream came to a tragic and senseless end when she was stabbed more than 30 times last October by that same man, identified by authorities as 43-year-old Jose Funes-Zabala, of Roosevelt.
It all happened in front of the couple's 2-year-old son, who relatives say was found covered in blood at his family's apartment.
On Monday, Feb. 10, Funes-Zabala was indicted on second-degree murder and related charges in Nassau County Court, prosecutors announced.
“The horrifying scene, and the child smeared with his mother’s blood, were discovered after repeated attempts by family to contact the victim were unsuccessful,” said Nassau County District Attorney Anne Donnelly. “We are committed to ensuring justice for Brenda and her loved ones as we prosecute this case.”
Brenda Guadalupe Alfaro-Alcantara and her 2-year-old son.
While justice is closer to being served, Alfaro-Alcantara's family remains reeling and maintains it all could have been avoided.
Funes-Zabala had a history of abusive behavior that went unchecked for years, family members claimed.
“For years, we knew something was wrong with him,” his cousin, Rebecca Flores wrote on a GoFundMe campaign for Brenda's son. “He would terrorize his little cousins. He attacked another ex, the mother of his older son.”
In 2022, when Funes-Zabala’s son was just 2 weeks old, the boy was admitted to NYU Langone Hospital for severe injuries, including a broken leg, according to relatives. Doctors allowed the child to return home, concluding it could’ve been an accident.
“Then, two and a half months later, the baby returned to the hospital,” Funes said. This time, the boy had a fractured skull, bleeding in his brain and eye, a broken rib, and a broken finger. Believing the injuries to be caused by physical abuse, the state removed the child from his parents’ custody.
After spending a year in the care of a relative, the boy was returned to the custody of his mother, Alfaro-Alcantara. Relatives spent months fighting with the court, demanding they do more to protect them, Funes said.
“The state had no clear evidence that those injuries came from him,” she said. “He should’ve been put behind bars. We're still angry that more wasn’t done.”
Brenda Guadalupe Alfaro-Alcantara and her 2-year-old son.
As if the nightmare couldn't get worse, it did.
The horrific attack unfolded on Oct. 5, 2024, when Funes-Zabala went to Alfaro-Alcantara’s basement apartment in Hempstead, according to the Nassau County DA’s office. He reportedly became enraged after learning that the woman, who immigrated from El Salvador to be with him in 2021, had begun dating someone else.
Funes-Zabala stabbed Alfaro-Alcantara more than 30 times in her bedroom while their son was in the same room, prosecutors alleged. After the attack, he reportedly walked out of the apartment with blood on his face and fled the scene, leaving his uninjured but blood-covered son behind.
Concerned relatives, unable to reach Alfaro-Alcantara, later discovered the deceased woman and her son. The murder occurred just one day after an order of protection against Funes-Zabala, issued on behalf of Alfaro-Alcantara, expired.
Funes-Zabala was arrested the day after the murder by Nassau County police at Nassau University Medical Center, where he had checked himself in for injuries.
In court Monday, Funes-Zabala was indicted on the following counts:
- Murder in the second degree
- Criminal possession of a weapon
- Endangering the welfare of a child
He pleaded not guilty and was remanded to the Nassau County jail without bail. If convicted, he faced up to 25 years to life in prison.
Alfaro-Alcantara’s family and friends remembered her as a devoted mother who worked tirelessly to provide for her son despite limited resources.
“She leaves behind a two-year-old son who won’t remember her voice or the warmth of her hugs,” Flores wrote on the GoFundMe campaign to help relatives care for the boy, who is with a relative who cared for him following prior abuse allegations, and ensure he can travel to El Salvador to visit his mother's grave.
Click here to donate to Brenda Guadalupe Alfaro-Alcantara's family.
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