The registered sex offender held in custody on an unrelated offense for months following the mysterious murder of Brooklyn beauty Laura Garza will be released on Christmas Eve unless there's a reason to keep him in jail, according to a published report.
Michael Mele was never charged in connection with the death of Garza, whose skeletal remains were discovered in rural Pennsylvania nearly 18 months after she vanished, having last been seen with Mele at a McDonald's in Orange County early December 5.
Investigators tracked the duo's path to the upstate fast-food restaurant, tracing their movements since they were seen leaving a Chelsea nightclub together, but it was there the trail went cold.
Law enforcement officials had said Mele did not cooperate with authorities during the course of their investigation. A search of the 24-year-old's car in December 2008 failed to reveal sufficient evidence to link him conclusively to the crime.
An aspiring dancer, Garza moved to Brooklyn from McAllen, Texas, just a few months before she vanished. She was 25 years old. No one has been charged in her death.
Mele had several sex-offense convictions in Rockland County, most involving approaching women while masturbating, and he was wanted in New Jersey for similar crimes. He had been sentenced to six years' probation and police quickly locked him up for violating the terms of that parole. He admitted drinking, he had not attended sex-offender treatment and he had not reported to his probation officer.
Mele was later charged with possession of stolen credit cards — not Garza's — and with failing to notify a sex offender registry when he moved to Wallkill.
A judge sentenced Mele to one to three years in state prison last November. The Department of Correctional Services determined last week he would be released this December for good behavior, according to the Record Online.
