Wife Pleads Not Guilty to Killing Her Husband

A mother of five pleaded not guilty to shooting her husband as he slept, then cutting off his head and limbs with a power saw and burning them.

Gladis Barreras Soto, 37, entered the plea to a murder charge Thursday.

Ventura County Superior Court Judge Ed Brodie raised her bail from $250,000 to $1 million after prosecutors said they feared she might flee to Mexico, where she has relatives.

Also, “we feared for the safety of family members if she bailed out,” Deputy Dist. Atty. Patricia Murphy said.

Soto is accused of shooting Pedro Barragan, 35, in the head Feb. 20 as he slept.

Prosecutors say she dragged his body to their garage and dismembered it with a power saw, placed the head and limbs in plastic bags and took them to a remote area along the Ventura River, where she set them on fire.

A homeless man reported seeing a woman burning the bags Monday night. Soto was arrested the next day at her duplex. Her husband’s torso was found in the garage, authorities said.

Her five children, ages 6 to 11, were placed in protective custody.

Barragan’s body was flown Thursday to his hometown of Techaluta Montenegro in Mexico.

Soto told investigators that she was a victim of physical and verbal abuse during the couple’s 15-year marriage. She also faces assault charges for allegedly ramming her husband’s parked car last month, and the car of a woman she believed to be his girlfriend.