The man charged with killing a 74-year-old Pennsauken woman who gave him a place live was described Thursday by a prosecutor as a monster who repaid the kindness of a generous soul with violence.

“This was a woman who took this man in. This is a woman who put a roof over his head, fed him, cared for him, and this is ultimately what he did to her,” Assistant Camden County Prosecutor Kevin Moran said.

Esteban Cabrera, 30, a citizen of Ecuador, is accused of suffocating Juanita Rosario at her home on Burrwood Avenue Saturday after he had been drinking and they got into an argument, according to the prosecutor’s office.

Judge Thomas J. Shusted, Jr. ordered him jailed pending trial at a detention hearing Thursday.

The family and friends of Juanita Rosario comfort one another in Superior Court in Camden during the detention hearing of Esteban Cabrera, 30, on Thursday, Aug. 15, 2019.Rebecca Everett | For NJ.com

Rosario’s daughter, Julie Rosario, told NJ Advance Media Monday that Rosario was hardworking, smart, kind, and always trying to help others — including Cabrera.

“She was obviously trying to help this person and he decided to take her life,” Julie Rosario said.

Moran said in court that Cabrera made a “clear confession” by immediately texting a coworker that he had “killed someone and did not know what to do.” He then talked to the coworker via phone and “gave specific details of what he did to this 74-year-old woman,” Moran said.

The coworker reported this to police around 7:30 p.m. Saturday and gave them Rosario’s address, but police found the house locked and left after they couldn’t make contact with anyone, authorities said. They were called back to the home after 11 p.m. when a family member found Rosario dead in the home, Moran said.

When police caught Cabrera, they found him with his passport. Moran said this and the fact that he asked two friends for money that night are signs he was planning to flee. Cabrera didn’t need the passport just as a form of identification, Moran said, because he also has a resident identification card.

In the hours between the first 911 call and the discovery of Rosario’s body, Cabrera asked a friend to “check for people” at the home and then picked the friend up in Rosario’s car, Moran said.

Cabrera asked the man for $100 “because he had problems,” Moran said. They left the car elsewhere and walked back to the home, where Cabrera told Rosario’s family he didn’t know where the car was, Moran said.

Cabrera’s public defender, Ed Rivas, argued unsuccessfully that his client be released on the grounds that he has no criminal record and is unlikely to flee because his passport was seized.

Neither Rivas or Moran said whether Cabrera is a legal resident of the U.S.

Rebecca Everett may be reached at reverett@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @rebeccajeverett. Find NJ.com on Facebook.

Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips