EDINBURG — In the year since Josephina Lugo disappeared from her Mission condo, investigators still have not found her body.

A severed arm and sun-bleached skull - found in separate Willacy County canals - are all that remain of the 68-year-old missing woman.

Neither body part revealed her cause of death.

But as prosecutors opened their case Tuesday against her husband, Pedro Lugo, they assured jurors that his actions before and after his wife vanished would prove more than enough to convict him of murder.

"To understand a murder like this, you have to look at the entire picture," said Michelle Puig, an Hidalgo County assistant district attorney. "You have to look at the marriage between Pedro and Josephina."

Investigators believe Pedro Lugo, 72, fatally stabbed his wife on Aug. 22, 2008 - their wedding anniversary - and then recruited his son to help dispose of her body.

And while his defense team emphasized Tuesday that their client had never physically threatened his wife, witness after witness called by the state Tuesday described the Lugos' marriage as deeply unhappy.

"She wanted a divorce. She wanted her own life," said Michelle Sandoval, a home healthcare nurse who often spoke with Josephina Lugo on visits to care for her husband. "She was scared."

Josephina Lugo filed divorce papers one month before family members first reported her missing, but she continued to live with her husband. During that time, he allegedly grew more emotionally and verbally abusive, jealous and possessive. He berated her in front of friends, witnesses said.

At one point, Pedro Lugo accused his wife of having an affair with their wheelchair-bound neighbor, who had a serious heart condition, said Maria Aldna, the man's wife.

Another friend told jurors Tuesday that she had urged Josephina Lugo to record all conversations she had with her husband so they could be used against him in divorce proceedings.

When Mission police began investigating Josephina Lugo's whereabouts in August, Lydia Slissa suspected the worst.

"She told me that she was afraid," Slissa testified. "She was afraid to take a shower. She was afraid (he) would harm her in bed."

Pedro Lugo emerged as an early suspect.

Three days after the slaying, he allegedly signed the deed to his home over to his son Javier Lugo, 45. He gave the younger man power of attorney over his estate and transferred a $67,000 investment account into the son's name.

Pedro Lugo then booked a bus trip to San Luis Potosí, S.L.P., Mexico. He returned to the United States a week later, after police had arrested and charged his son with murder.

Javier Lugo has since entered a plea of not guilty and is set to go to trial later this year.

Investigators found evidence that suggested the father and son may have attempted to remove Josephina Lugo's blood from their kitchen, bathroom and front walkway with bleach, prosecutors said.

But since his arrest, Pedro Lugo has consistently denied any involvement in his wife's disappearance.

"I wish they would cut me loose, and I'll be looking for her," he said during an early pretrial hearing in September. "I loved that woman for 16 years. I have never done anything wrong to her."

Defense attorneys Derek Harkrider and Regina Richardson did not present opening statements Tuesday and declined to comment after the trial adjourned for the day, citing a gag order imposed in the case.

If convicted, Pedro Lugo could face up to life in prison and $10,000 in fines. Testimony in his case is expected to resume today.

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Jeremy Roebuck covers courts and general assignments for The Monitor. You can reach him at (956) 683-4437.