When police officers responded to early-morning screams last week, they found a 19-year-old UA student dead on the floor of a Midtown apartment.

His hands were pulled behind his back and a cord was wrapped around his neck and arms, according to a probable-cause statement filed with the court.

He suffered several cuts before police found him in the apartment complex in the 700 block of North Alvernon Way, near East Fifth Street.
Ralph C. Romero Jr. - a fine-arts student with an intense passion for dance - was killed June 14, just two days before his 20th birthday. Police haven''t said exactly what killed him, except to say that he suffered "obvious trauma."

His death stunned those who knew him. They couldn''t understand why someone who brought so much joy to others was killed.

He started dancing as a young child, said his grandfather, 58-year-old Ramon Romero.

He wanted to help others enjoy life as much as he did, Ramon Romero said.

After graduating from Flowing Wells High School, he studied dance at the University of Arizona and spread his passion for dance through the Tucson area, said cousin Elizabeth Bingham.

"He always had a smile on his face and he was always trying to make people laugh," Bingham said.

Romero loved dance in all its forms including jazz, modern, hip-hop and ballet.

He went to New York last year to make connections and pursue a professional dancing career. If that didn''t work out, he wanted to go to law school, Bingham said.

He was a dance teacher at Oro Valley Pride Cheer and Dance where his intensity inspired the girls he worked with, said Rose Miranda, a co-director of the program.

"He was just dynamic and happy and had such a positive attitude about life," Miranda said.
Romero''s slaying was sudden and shocking, Miranda said. Her daughter, Margaret Hathaway, who is also a co-director of Oro Valley Pride Cheer and Dance, said she spoke with Romero the afternoon before he died.

He seemed excited and planned to hang out with friends later that night, she said. But he was always excited about something, she added.
Moments before finding Romero''s body, officers struggled with a man who dropped a pair of bloody scissors as he ran from the Midtown apartment complex, according to the probable cause statement.

The man - later identified as Jimmy D. Waymire, 25 - hid from authorities until 6:30 a.m., when police found him on a rooftop about three blocks away from the apartment complex. In his possession were Romero''s keys, cell phone and wallet.

Waymire was booked into the Pima County jail on suspicion of first-degree murder, kidnapping and armed robbery. He declined a request for an interview.

His bail has been set at $1 million.
Police haven''t released any information about a possible motive for the slaying. Nor have investigators said why Waymire and Romero apparently were together in the moments before Romero''s death.

The investigation is still ongoing and police are still piecing together the details, said Sgt. Mark Robinson, a Tucson Police Department spokesman.

The renter of the apartment where Romero was found is out of state, Robinson said, and Romero was checking the apartment periodically for the tenant.

According to court records, Waymire has been arrested on several charges including assault, criminal damage, disorderly conduct, theft and aggravated domestic violence.

He has been convicted of criminal damage and disorderly conduct.

Robinson said that at this point in the investigation, police cannot say with certainty how Waymire and Romero knew each other.

Either way, those who knew Romero said they are left wondering why someone who loved life and wanted to bring joy to others is gone.
Homicide detectives are asking anyone with information about the slaying to call 911 or 88-CRIME, the anonymous tip line of the Pima County Attorney''s Office.


Vigil tonight:
A vigil in honor of Ralph C. Romero will begin at 7:30 tonight at the Ina E. Gittings Building at the University of Arizona, just north McKale Center.

Benefit concert:
Flowing Wells High School students and alumni, UA dancers and others touched by the life of Ralph Romero are holding a benefit dance concert to raise money for funeral services and to fund a scholarship in his memory.
The concert will take place at 7 p.m. June 24 at the UA''s Stevie Eller Dance Theatre. A $5 donation is asked to purchase tickets. Those who attend can also make donations directly to Homicide Survivors c/o Ralph Romero to help offset funeral costs for his family.
Proceeds will also go to provide scholarships for Flowing Wells High School students who exhibit a spirit similar to Romero''s.