In a chilling case that has gripped Texas, the legal team is pushing for the ultimate punishment for two Venezuelan illegal immigrants accused of the brutal rape and murder of a 12-year-old girl.
The suspects, Johan Martinez-Rangel, 22, and Franklin Pena, 26, face capital murder charges in connection with the death of Jocelyn Nungaray, whose life was tragically cut short in June.
As reported by The Post Millennial, the pair allegedly kidnapped, sexually assaulted, and strangled the young girl before discarding her body under a Texas bridge. Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg has made it clear that she will be seeking the death penalty for both Pena and Martinez-Rangel. "We will be filing notice with the state of Texas that we intend to seek the death penalty against Jocelyns murderers," Ogg stated. She further emphasized the severity of the crime, saying, "We are seeking death because we want the message out there that, regardless of who you are, but especially if you are illegally in this country, that you will face the same consequences as anyone else for murdering a child during the course of raping and kidnapping."
The decision to seek the death penalty was not taken lightly. Ogg consulted with Nungarays parents before making this decision. "We base these decisions on the strength of the evidence and the gruesomeness of this crime and yes I've spoken with Alexis Nungaray multiple times along with her father, Ogg added. She further noted that the family supports this move. "We don't make the victims choose, our prosecutors determine what's most likely [to succeed]. But we feel that a Texas jury will sentence these two defendants based on the evidence we have to death, she continued.
The tragic case of Jocelyn Nungaray has become one of the more high-profile crimes allegedly involving illegal immigrants, along with the murder of Laken Riley. Jocelyn was reportedly kidnapped while on a trip to a convenience store from her mothers apartment.
Prosecutors provided a harrowing account of the crime in June, stating, "In this case, the defendant lured a 12-year-old under a bridge where he and his co-defendant remained with her for over [two] hours, took her pants off, tied her up, and killed her, then threw her body into the bayou." This case serves as a stark reminder of the need for stringent law enforcement and border control to protect innocent lives from such heinous crimes.
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