Family Looks For Answers In Slaying Of Miami Beach Waitress

MIAMI BEACH, FL — The family of a popular Miami Beach waitress is still looking for answers nearly three months after the woman's mysterious death in her South Beach apartment.

"It’s been three months, and we haven’t heard anything," shared Diane Fletcher in the death of her 38-year-old niece, Aubrey Figg. "It's horrible. I am sad most days, and I am a happy person."

Figg's husband, Alex Arcega, found his wife's lifeless body around 9:40 p.m. June 3 in their second-floor garden apartment after returning from his job as a chef in a South Beach steakhouse.

Neighbors described the terrifying scene in a statement to police.

"My wife is dead," Arcega cried, according to a witness account shared by Miami Beach police. "Call the police. Aubrey is dead."

Figg's death has been ruled a homicide by the Miami-Dade County Medical Examiner’s Office.

"Detectives have interviewed potential witnesses and those who knew the victim, but have not yet been able to make an arrest," said Ernesto Rodriguez of the Miami Beach Police Department.

The agency has not released many details of the crime scene, but Fletcher said she believes there was a struggle near the front door of the couple's apartment while it was still daylight.

"She had a laceration on her throat. They said that’s what killed her," Fletcher recalled in an interview with Patch. "She probably bled out." Fletcher said there is evidence the struggle continued into the living room, down a hallway, in the kitchen and finally into the couple's bedroom.

"There was a struggle on the bed. Ultimately, she laid on the floor behind the door of their bedroom," Fletcher said.

Born in Indiana, Figg lived in Miami Beach for nearly 13 years after tiring of the harsh winters back home. Her mother, two aunts and a stepsister all live in South Florida.

Figg made a life for herself as a server at TGI Friday's along iconic Ocean Drive and went to school while working at the tourist-favorite restaurant.

Last year, her hard work paid off with a degree from Miami Dade College. She also worked a second job as a teacher's assistant at a local Montessori school.

In her spare time, Figg enjoyed being with friends and organizing get-togethers on the beach.

"That's where we had her graduation party last year, out there on the beach," Fletcher said. It's also where friends and family gathered to celebrate her all-too-short life the day of her funeral.

"We all went back to the beach," Fletcher said. "She would have wanted that. She loved going to the beach."

Figg hoped to start a new chapter this fall helping children who have problems with their speech.

She was off the day she was killed, leading some to believe Figg might have known her killer. Her aunt said it would be difficult to process such information.

"Anybody that knew her would never do this to her," Fletcher said. "She was a kind soul. She would never hurt anybody."

Fletcher doesn't think her niece would have left the door unlocked either. "She always had her doors locked," Fletcher said. "To me, it looked like she had opened the door up."

Fletcher and Miami Beach police are asking for the public's help in solving Figg's slaying.

"Somebody knows something. It’s too small a community for somebody not to know something," Fletcher said.

To report a tip, call Miami-Dade Crime Stoppers at 305-471-TIPS (8477) or 866-471-8477. Alternatively, visit www.crimestoppersmiami.com and select "Give a Tip" or text "CSMD" followed by the tip information to 274637.