Who was César Román and what did he do? All about the Spanish chef ahead of Cooking Up Murder on Netflix

Cooking Up Murder: Uncovering The Story Of César Román is the latest upcoming documentary series on the Netflix streaming platform and it follows the murder case implicating a Spanish chef for killing his girlfriend. Divided into three parts, the docu-series explores the story of the Spanish chef, César Román, as he built a career through using a series of false identities.

Román was a restauranteur and he made his name in the culinary world as "the king of cachopo." But his flourishing cooking career soon came to an end when he was arrested for the murder of Heidi Paz, whom he was romantically involved with, in November 2018.

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All about César Román

César Román was a Spanish chef and restauranteur who was known as “the king of cachopo." Cachopo is a Spanish dish similar to a cordon bleu and it is a specialty of the Asturias region in the north of Spain. Roman was arrested in November 2018 for the murder of Heidi Paz, who was his 25-year-old Honduran girlfriend.

By the time her dismembered body was found, Roman had fled Madrid after committing the heinous crime. He then started to work in a restaurant in Zaragoza under a false identity. After a three-month nationwide manhunt, Roman was eventually captured by the police. Román's trial made headlines across Spain and it resulted in the passing of his guilty verdict in 2021.

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Who was Heidi Paz? All About her murder and Roman's conviction

César Román met Heidi Paz in April 2018 when she joined the cider house he ran in Madrid. She started working for him and shortly after that, they became romantically involved. The couple even moved in together eventually.

But in June 2018, Paz was starting to question their relationship and had second thoughts about settling down with him. She made up her mind and left him with a note detailing that she was leaving the house.

A still from Cooking Up Murder (Image via Netflix)

Fast forward to August 5, 2018, Paz tried to resume contact with Roman before going to the home that they used to live in for a quick chat. That was the last anyone ever heard from Heidi Paz.

Roman allegedly murdered Paz and fled Madrid to work in a restaurant in Zaragoza, Spain, using a fake name and hiding his real identity as the police were after him. He was soon captured and it was reported that Román had killed Paz and dismembered her. He had then put her remains in a suitcase.

During his trial, Roman maintained his innocence. According to him, his former partner had either gone back to her native place in Honduras or had become a victim of an alleged organized drug gang, in the involvement of which she lost her life.

However, César Román was found guilty in 2021 and was sentenced to 15 years in prison following a unanimous guilty verdict. He was also ordered to pay a compensation of nearly €250,000 to the victim's mother and children. In 2022, Roman appealed to the court regarding his sentence. However, his appeal was rejected by the court.

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About Netflix's Cooking Up Murder: Uncovering The Story Of César Román

A still from Cooking Up Murder (Image via Netflix)

The Netflix documentary essaying the life and trial of César Román will be coming to the streaming platform on May 10, 2024. The official synopsis for the three-part series reads as follows:

"This docuseries analyses a murder case implicating a Spanish chef, who built a career in the spotlight through a web of secrets and false identities."

The documentary will feature interviews and original clips from the investigation and trial to build up the story and walk the audience through the whole affair.

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Catch Cooking Up Murder: Uncovering The Story Of César Román on Netflix this Friday.