What Happened To Chef César Román From Netflix's Cooking Up Murder?

Summary César Román, once famed as "The King of Cachopo," was convicted of murdering his girlfriend, Heidi Paz, and sentenced to 15 years in prison.

Despite initially claiming innocence, Román eventually confessed to Paz's murder in a letter to her family, citing "total and sincere regret."

Evidence, including Paz's body found in a warehouse rented by Román, led to his conviction, despite his lawyer's insistence on his innocence.

Cooking Up Murder: Uncovering The Story Of César Román raises the question of what happened to the famous chef after he was convicted of murder. Netflix’s new true-crime documentary, the three-part series highlights the intriguing life of the celebrity chef and the gruesome murder of his girlfriend, Heidi Paz. Román rose to fame after opening his first eatery, A Cañada, which served a Spanish dish called cachopo. When A Cañada became a resounding success, Roman earned the title, “The King of Cachopo.”

Before Román opened the eatery, he was involved in several crimes, including not paying his workers and writing fraudulent checks. According to the Netflix documentary, Román lied about all the awards that he claimed his restaurant had won. The King of Cachopo was actually bankrupt and his franchise was insolvent. Román might have become popular because of cachopo, but most people now recognize him for the murder of Heidi Paz.

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César Román Was Convicted For The Murder Of Heidi Paz

In June 2021, three years after the police arrested Román, a jury convicted him for the dismemberment and murder of Heidi Paz and sentenced him to 15 years in prison. Throughout the trial, Román claimed he was innocent. He alleged that the police and witnesses were lying and that drug dealers and organized crime were behind the murder. However, all evidence pointed towards Román being the perpetrator (via People).

One of the most important pieces of evidence that led to Román’s conviction and sentencing was the fact that Paz’s body was discovered in a warehouse that Román was renting. According to the investigators, there was no forced entry into the warehouse and Román was the only one with the key. Further, a taxi driver confessed to taking Román to the warehouse on August 5, 2018, a few days after Paz was reported missing (via El País). Román filed an appeal for his sentence a year after his conviction, but The Criminal Chamber of Spain’s Supreme Court rejected it.

César Román Confessed To The Murder Of Heidi Paz

Despite claiming that he was innocent for several years and pleading not guilty during his trial, Román wrote a letter confessing to the gruesome murder of Paz in April 2024 (via El Heraldo). According to the Spanish media outlet Telecinco, Román apologized to Paz’s family for the crime for which he was convicted. In his letter, Román stated, “I want to make clear my total and sincere regret of it.” However, Román’s lawyer still claims that his client is innocent and that his confession was made out of desperation.

In the Spanish criminal justice system, prisoners who admit to the crimes they're convicted for are allowed more privileges. The Paz family lawyer, Alexis Socias, and judge Jose Antonia Tain, who presided over Román’s case, think that his motive for confessing to the crime was to access certain privileges and not because he felt any remorse (via TODAY). The final episode of Netflix’s Cooking Up Murder: Uncovering The Story Of César Román highlights where Román is now and what happened to him after he was convicted.

Sources: Cooking Up Murder: Uncovering The Story Of Cesar Roman, People, El País, El Heraldo, Telecinco, TODAY