Daniel Gross [left], and Melissa Leonardo [right], were arrested on suspicion of murder in connection with the death of Lizette Cuesta, who police say used her last words to identify the suspected killers.

Police in Modesto California arrested Daniel Gross, 19, and Melissa Leonardo, 25, on suspicion of murder in the brutal slaying of  teenager Lizette Cuesta.
The suspects were accused of fatally stabbing 19-year-old Cuesta multiple times and leaving her for dead just outside of Livermore in the early morning hours, authorities said.
Authorities said Cuesta fought for her life early Monday morning and used her last words to help identify the alleged killers. Police sources said indicate she’d been stabbed in the throat, and the first arriving California Highway Patrol officers noted she had slice marks on her neck.

The victim from the Tesla Road Homicide has been identified as: Lizette Andrea Cuesta, Age 19, from Tracy, CA. Lizette Cuesta was friends with the couple who wound up killing her

While a motive is not yet known, police described the suspects and victim as friends.
“On Monday, February 12, 2018, about 2:00 am, CHP-Dublin Officers responded to a 911 report of an injured woman on the ground near mile marker 8.49 on Tesla Road in rural Livermore,” a press release stated.
Dispatchers were told in the 911 call that a woman missing an arm and lying in the middle of Tesla Road, about 2 miles west of Carnegie Park, said Sgt. Ray Kelly of the Alameda County Sheriff’s Office.
The victim, later identified as 19-year-old Lizette Cuesta from Tracy, was not missing an arm, but she was pronounced dead shortly after being airlifted to Eden Medical Center in Castro Valley.
Daniel Gross, 19, and 25-year-old Melissa Leonardo were arrested in Modesto after the victim gave officers a “compelling account” of who was responsible for her death, Sgt. Kelly said.
Gross and Leonardo, who were engaged, worked at a fast-food chain together. A former colleague of Leonardo’s described her as “moody at times,” but otherwise “She had emotional issues & was extremely jealous. He [Gross] had anger issues & talked about killing people who talked too much,”  another colleague said of Leonardo and Gross.

Stabbing victim: Cuesta Used Her Last Dying Words to Help Identify Gross & Leonardo

Cuesta was transported to the hospital with critical injuries after being stabbed multiple times early Monday in Livermore. She later succumbed to her injuries.

19-year-old Daniel Gross is said to have anger management issues and speaks about killing people

Daniel Gross in paramilitary gear posted on his Facebook page

While a motive has not been identified in the alleged murder, authorities said Gross and Leonardo had been friends with the victim.
Kelly told reporters at a February 13 news conference that detectives “have a lot to fill in as far as motive,” adding that Cuesta willingly entered the suspect’s vehicle, according to The Modesto Bee.
Authorities are investigating what occurred after the victim got into the car. “We have a very dynamic crime scene on Tesla Road…I’m going to leave it at that,” Kelly told The Bee when asked about where the stabbing may have taken place.

Suspects Gross and Leonardo reportedly are engaged and The Suspects Worked Together. 

Gross ‘Talked About Killing People,’ While Leonardo Was Described as ‘Moody’

The victim grew up in San Jose but resided in Tracy at the time of her death, while Gross and Leonardo worked together at Carl’s Jr. in Tracy, California, according to sources.
Described as a ‘rebel’ soul with anger management issue, Gross on his  Facebook page page posts images of paramilitaries, the confederate flag and runic symbols.
A colleague described the suspects as two “hollow souls” who were “constantly all over each other” while working.
Leonardo, a mother-of-three allegedly, often displayed “an attitude.”
Friends of both suspects say “ [Leonardo] had emotional issues and was extremely jealous. He had anger issues & talked about killing people who talked too much,” friends of the couple told Fox 40.

“Daniel has always talked about if someone pisses him off bad enough he will kill them,” Montana Howland told the station. “But Melissa is the only one with a car and she goes everywhere Daniel goes, so that’s probably the reason she got (dragged) into it.”

A GoFundMe page set up for the family of Lizette Cuesta.

A GoFundMe account has been set up by Zelda Lopez to help Cuesta’s family during this tragic time.
“We are raising money to help the family of Lizette in this very tragic and difficult time,” the website reads. “Any and all donations will be greatly appreciated.”
At the time of publishing the page had raised nearly $7,500 of a $30,000 goal.