Guatemalan migrant accused of raping and murdering 11-year-old Texas girl found in laundry basket under her father’s bed told cops ‘he was forced to do it at gunpoint by two Black men’
A Guatemalan immigrant who entered the US in January and is accused of raping and murdering his 11-year-old neighbor says he was forced to do so by “two black men who held him at gunpoint.”
Juan Carlos Garcia-Rodriguez, 18, made his first court appearance on Thursday after being charged with raping, strangling and hiding 11-year-old Maria Gonzalez in a plastic bag placed in a laundry basket on Aug. 12.
Gonzalez’s body was found by her father at their home in Pasadena, Texas, when he came home from work.
Pasadena police called Garcia-Rodriguez a “person of interest” and the prime suspect in the case — which left a key in the little girl’s home as vital evidence.
Juan Carlos Garcia-Rodriguez, 18, made his first court appearance on Thursday after being charged with raping, strangling and hiding 11-year-old Maria Gonzalez in a plastic bag placed in a laundry basket on Aug. 12.
Garcia-Rodriguez, 18, is the prime suspect in Maria’s murder case, claiming he was coerced into doing so by “two black men who held him at gunpoint”
Authorities in Shreveport, Louisiana, took Rodriguez into custody over the weekend after Harris County, Texas officials charged him with murder in connection with the girl’s death.
Police said Garcia-Rodriguez “lived in the same apartment complex where the victim was found” before her death.
Garcia-Rodriguez was denied bail in the case, and according to prosecutors, he entered voluntarily, first denying the horrific incident and then admitting his involvement.
Garcia-Rodriguez was denied bail in the case and, according to prosecutors, he entered voluntarily, first denying the horrific incident and then admitting his involvement. Fox news.
They allege Garcia-Rodriguez said he was forced at gunpoint by two black men to commit the assault, which could get him the death penalty.
According to court documents obtained by the outlet, Maria’s father, Carmelo, heard Garcia-Rodriguez in the stairwell on the phone as he left for work.
Maria took out the trash and told her father it was “the long-haired neighbor,” after which Carmelo went to work.
At around 10:02 a.m., Carmelo received a WhatsApp text from Maria saying someone was knocking on the door, so he sent family to check on her.
When he returned home at 2:30 p.m., he found his daughter’s body in a black garbage bag and stuffed into a white clothes basket wrapped in another garbage bag.
Her body suffered blunt force trauma to the head and neck. Carmelo also found a silver key on the floor.
After speaking with neighbors, Garcia-Rodriguez’s roommates said he had a new job and was moving out, but refused to return the key.
Carmelo Gonzalez said he left for work around 10 a.m. on August 12 and communicated with his daughter by phone a little later. Then she told him that a stranger was knocking on the door
Maria and her father Carmelo had been living in the apartment complex for about three months, after staying in Florida and Austin, Texas. The girl’s mother lives in Guatemala
They told the police that they were forced to change the locks. When the police returned to the scene, they asked for the old lock and keys from the housemates that matched the old lock.
Garcia-Rodriguez reportedly drank into the early morning hours on the day of the murder and denied being at the crime scene, according to Fox News.
Prosecutors said when he turned himself in, he said he was with friends, but they did not confirm the story.
The 18-year-old lived in the hotel complex for several weeks and was last seen in the complex two days after the brutal murder.
Garcia-Rodriguez allegedly entered the US in January. He crossed the border into El Paso, Texas. After “turning himself in,” it was believed the teenager, who was 17 when he crossed over, was subsequently released.
Detectives released a photo of Garcia-Rodriguez with their appeal and also offered a $5,000 reward for information leading to his arrest or charges before they find and take him into custody.
At a press conference — six days after the murder — Pasadena Police Chief Josh Bruegger called Garcia-Rodriguez a “person of interest”
This has been reported by sources at the Department of Homeland Security NewsNation He is believed to have fled to Mexico before being apprehended by police on August 19.
Garcia-Rodriguez was released after entering the US because he had a sponsor in Louisiana. A sponsor typically agrees to provide housing or financial support to a migrant while they are processed and their status is determined.
To talk with Fox newsCarmelo said the last he heard from her was “in bed.”
Shortly after leaving, Carmelo said he received a message from Maria saying there had been a knock on the front door.
“I told her, ‘Don’t open the door, because I’m coming to work,’ and she replied, ‘I’m in my bed,'” Gonzalez told the outlet.
Law enforcement officials said there had been no burglary at the residence.
The father and daughter lived in the apartment complex for about three months. The girl’s mother lives in Guatemala.
Maria and her father lived in Austin, Texas and Florida before Pasadena. Maria was not registered with Pasadena ISD, police said.
Chief Bruegger said detectives spoke to Garcia-Rodriguez at the apartment complex before he was a suspect
Maria and her father had been living in the relatively quiet apartment complex for about three months when the murder took place
Police also took DNA samples from others living in the complex, but say getting cooperation has been challenging.
Tens of thousands of migrants entered the US through El Paso this year.
The crisis has been going on for several years, but peaked around December 2022 as the government prepared to end the COVID-era Title 42 rules, which made it more difficult to enter the country.
Many present themselves to authorities and are treated before being released.
Most are expected to appear in court at a later date for a trial to determine their status.