Roommates accused of strangling 12-year-old girl blame each other, Texas cops say
Roommates accused of strangling a 12-year-old girl are blaming each other, according to Texas court documents.
Jocelyn Nungaray was strangled to death after she left her home the night of June 17 without her family’s knowledge, according to Houston police. Her body was found in a bayou.
Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel, 22, and Franklin Pena, 26, were arrested and charged with capital murder June 21, police said. Their bonds were set at $10 million each.
Attorneys for Pena and Martinez-Rangel did not immediately respond to McClatchy News’ request for comment July 29.
A search warrant filed July 12 detailed interviews from the two suspects — who pointed the blame at each other for the 12-year-old’s death, according to the documents.
Pena told detectives he and his roommate, Martinez-Rangel, left a Houston bar around 10 p.m. and started walking back to their apartment, according to court documents.
They stopped at a 7-Eleven convenience store and asked Nungaray for directions to their apartment, police said. Then, Pena said he saw Martinez-Rangel kissing Nungaray and wrapping his arms around her neck, court documents stated.
Martinez-Rangel had his forearm around Nungaray’s neck as he walked her under a nearby bridge, Pena told investigators, according to the search warrant. Then, Pena said he saw his roommate take off the girl’s pants and sexually assault her, court documents said.
Pena said he told Martinez-Rangel to stop, but he replied, “I have to finish what I started,” court documents said. Martinez-Rangel then wrapped his arm around the girl’s neck and covered her mouth, killing her, Pena told investigators.
Martinez-Rangel then tied Nungaray’s hands and feet together and put her body in the bayou, Pena told investigators, according to the search warrant.
After the girl died, Pena said Martinez-Rangel shaved his beard “so that they do not recognize me,” he told his roommate, according to court documents.
Throughout the interview, Pena denied touching or sexually assaulting the girl, according to the search warrant.
When Martinez-Rangel was questioned, he pointed the blame back to Pena.
He repeatedly denied killing Nungaray but later initiated a conversation with detectives to say that he tied the girl’s hands and feet together and told Pena to throw her body in the bayou to “wash off the DNA,” according to court documents.
Both suspects have court dates scheduled for September.
This story was originally published July 29, 2024 at 11:07 AM with the headline "Roommates accused of strangling 12-year-old girl blame each other, Texas cops say."
