Couple Arrested in School Employee's Death: Police

Arrest and Extradition

A married couple was arrested in Mexico and extradited to California to face homicide charges in connection with the death of Geoffrey Bernardi, a 37-year-old teacher with the Clovis Unified School District. Antonio Garcia, 40, of Tulare, and Misty Gomez, 32, of Dinuba, were taken into custody on Aug. 19, according to a Clovis Police Department news release cited by the Los Angeles Times and Us Weekly. The pair are back in California and facing homicide-related charges, per the release.

Bernardi, of Clovis, was attacked on Dec. 18, 2025, along a canal near Barstow and Peach, according to police. He was hospitalized and died two days later. The Clovis Police Department said detectives identified Garcia and Gomez as suspects "following evidence located, communications between the two, and follow-up by our detectives," as reported by Us Weekly. Detectives traced the couple to Mexico with the help of technology, police said.

The Relationship and Investigation

Authorities revealed that Gomez had been dating Bernardi at the time of the attack while she was still married to Garcia. Bernardi's mother, Erin Adams, told YourCentralValley.com that her son met Gomez online and dated her for just two months, unaware she was already married. Adams described Gomez as "a very, very accomplished liar," and in an interview with ABC30 Fresno, she called Gomez a "sociopath." Adams also recalled that after Bernardi's first date with Gomez, he told her, "I met the woman I'm going to marry."

Investigators said Gomez was the only witness to the attack and described the suspect as wearing a black puffer jacket with a hoodie. In January of this year, detectives determined the attack was not random and had identified a person of interest, according to the New York Post.

Flight to Mexico and the Children

After Bernardi's death, Gomez fled to Mexico with her two young children from previous relationships, authorities said. Clovis police said 9-year-old Skye Mason and 12-year-old Castiel Hernandez had been missing from the City of Dinuba since April. The children, who have different fathers, were in the custody of the Desarrollo Integral de la Familia (DIF) in Michoacan, as reported by ABC 7 and cited in the New York Post. They will be reunited with their families with the assistance of Child Protective Services, according to police.

The suspects hid in Mexico for months before their arrest, authorities said. Both were extradited to the U.S. last week and booked in Santa Rita Jail in Alameda County on $1 million bail before being transported to the downtown jail in Fresno, per the New York Post. Us Weekly reported that Garcia and Gomez were expected to be detained in the Fresno County Jail.

Bernardi's Life and Legacy

Bernardi worked for the Clovis Unified School District as a career technical education teacher, ABC30 Fresno reported. His obituary, cited by Us Weekly, described him as a "beloved son, brother, uncle, nephew and cousin" and a "family man." The obituary noted that in recent years he had found his home and a career doing what he loved with the district, working as an AV Design Tech. It said he was "growing in a job he loved, working with people he loved. He was happy and thriving."

Bernardi was an organ donor and, according to his obituary, "helped save seven lives and impact countless others through tissue donation."

Authorities have not specified a potential motive for the attack, and it remains unclear whether Garcia or Gomez have retained legal counsel or entered pleas, as reported by Us Weekly.