A 48-year-old Texas woman indicted in 1999 for the death of her 3-year-old daughter was taken into custody after decades as a fugitive, according to prosecutors.
The Tarrant County Criminal District Attorney’s Office reported on Monday that Maria Narez had been arrested in Mexico a few days earlier. Narez was charged with capital murder for the death of her toddler, Kassandra White, in 1996.
According to prosecutors, Narez fled the United States before the case could be tried and has since been on the run.
“The DA’s office never gave up on bringing Narez back to to face the charge against her and answer for the death of her daughter,” the district attorney’s office said in a social media post.
Authorities did not disclose any other information on how they located Narez or where she was captured in Mexico. It was also unclear when she would return to Texas to face charges.
According to court documents, “Narez intentionally caused the child’s death by shaking her, throwing her into a wall, striking her with an unknown object, and causing her head to hit a door.”
The district attorney’s office thanked many agencies for their assistance in the investigation and arrest, including Interpol Mexico, the US Marshals Service’s Mexico Foreign Field Office, the Department of Homeland Security, and the Justice Department’s Office of International Affairs.
Tiffany Johnson, Victor Espino-Nevarez, and Assistant District Attorney Steven Elliott were all recognized with working on the case.
“Their tireless work ensures this decades-old case was not forgotten — and neither was the pursuit of justice,” the district attorney’s office said.
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