New Charges Added Against Former Charles City Resident Charged with Murder

Additional charges have been filed against a former Charles City resident accused of killing a New Hampton man.

26-year-old Sayvonne Jordan of Elma faces a first-degree murder charge in the death of 30-year-old Jonathan Esparza, who was last seen leaving New Hampton to visit a friend in Elma on October 20th. According to the criminal complaint, Jordan allegedly killed Esparza the same day at a residence in Elma.

Court records show a search warrant was executed at Jordan’s Elma residence on November 30th and human remains were located on the property. The Iowa State Medical Examiner’s Office determined them to be those of Esparza.

Monday, Howard County Attorney Kevin Schoerbel added two new charges against Jordan; going armed with intent and abuse of a corpse, both Class D felonies. An arraignment hearing for Jordan has been set for February 13th in Howard County District Court in Cresco.

Jordan is being held on a $1 million cash bond in the Howard County Jail.