Crime & Safety
2 Convicted of SF Torture, Murder
The victim was tortured and poisoned to death, and his body was put into a suitcase and dumped into the Bay.
SAN FRANCISCO — Two people were found guilty of murdering a male acquaintance whose corpse was later found floating in San Francisco waters in 2019, prosecutors said Tuesday.
Gerald Rowe was convicted of first-degree murder with allegations that the murder was intentional and involved the infliction of torture and administration of poison. He was also found guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit first-degree murder, the San Francisco District Attorney's Office said in a statement.
Co-defendant Angel Anderson separately pleaded guilty to first-degree murder by way of torture and poison, prosecutors said.
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According to testimonies and evidence presented at the court proceedings, 23-year-old George Saldivar went to Rowe's residence at the Donnelly Hotel at 1272 Market St. on Feb. 3, 2019.
Anderson confronted the victim with a machete before she and Rowe tied and bound him.
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Prosecutors said a noose was placed around Saldivar's neck with the attached rope tethered through a pulley device near the ceiling. His hands were bound behind his back with zip ties, a strap and duct tape. He was then reportedly tortured for over four hours in this position while he was screamed at, hit, punched, sodomized, assaulted with pliers, and had a bag placed over his head.
According to the District Attorney's Office, Rowe left the apartment to acquire fentanyl and when he returned, he and Anderson injected Saldivar with a syringe full of fentanyl and water mixture.
About 90 seconds after the injection, the victim began to convulse and struggle to breathe.
Trial proceedings revealed that Rowe and Anderson then folded Saldivar into a large rolling suitcase, even while he was still alive, before zipping it up and waiting for him to die.
Prosecutors said that at least 20 hours later, Rowe and Anderson wore disguises and took the suitcase almost 2 miles from the 1200 block of Market Street to the Bay near Rincon Park, where they tossed Saldivar's body into the water.
The victim was found floating near Pier 39 on Feb. 18, 2019.
"We feel an overwhelming sense of relief for the victim's family who have waited far too long to receive justice in this case. Mr. Rowe and Ms. Anderson's actions were heinous and a beloved son's life was lost far too early," District Attorney Brooke Jenkins said in a statement.
"While this conviction cannot undo the hours of torture and painful poisoning experienced by the victim, it does condemn the depravity of the defendant's acts along with the inhumane way he handled the victim's remains when he threw him into the Bay like garbage," added Assistant District Attorney Charly Weissenbach.
Rowe faces life in state prison without the possibility of parole while Anderson could be sentenced to 25 years to life in state prison, prosecutors said.
They are currently both in custody pending sentencing, which is scheduled for March 18.
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