The heartbroken family of Jocelyn Nungaray listened as the young woman fought until her last breath as the immigrants raped and strangled her before dumping her body in a Houston swamp.
Jocelyn Nungaray’s body was found floating in a creek near her home in Houston after Johan Johan José Rangel Martínez, 21, and Franklin José Peña Ramos, 26, lured her under a bridge and sexually assaulted her during two hours.
While both prosecutors and police believe the young woman was raped, the alleged attackers have not yet been charged with sexual assault and the results of the victim’s rape kit are still pending.
Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said Tuesday that “the evidence is clear that a sexual assault likely occurred.” But since none of the accused have actually admitted it, it will have to be proven through circumstantial evidence.
“We are waiting for laboratory testing to see if the capital murder charge can be elevated to one that would make them eligible for the death penalty,” Ogg said. FoxNews.
If you are accused of sexual crimes, the prosecutor may request the death penalty in this case.
Jocelyn’s mother, Alexis, hugs family members in the Earl of Harris courtroom.
During the dramatic court scenes, one of Jocelyn’s relatives yelled “Murderer” at Rangel-Martínez, who has two children, ages 5 and 2. Click2 Houston reported.
She said in Spanish, “I hope they kill your children,” as the shackled suspect walked out of the Harris County courtroom Tuesday.
Jocelyn, 12, was lured under a Houston bridge last week and sexually assaulted for two hours before being strangled to death by two illegal immigrants, authorities allege.
Johan José Rangel-Martínez, 21, one of two men accused of killing 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray, is led out of the courtroom by officers on Tuesday.
Franklin Pena Ramos, 26, one of two men accused of killing 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray, leaves the courtroom after bail was set at $10 million.
During the court hearing, prosecutors said Martínez Rangel had bite marks and scratches on his arm, and that he shaved his facial hair after the murder to avoid detection.
Assistant District Attorney Megan Long and the lead prosecutor said in court that Pena Ramos told police she allegedly tried to convince Rangel Martinez to stop, but he allegedly refused and climbed on top of Jocelyn and choked her. .
He also said that Rangel Martínez would have told Peña Ramos that he had to ‘finish what he started’, while covering the young woman’s mouth.
Alexis Nungaray, Jocelyn’s mother, pictured center, with other heartbroken family members during a news conference Monday after one of the defendants, Franklin Pena, appeared in court Monday.
Rangel Martinez admitted to tying up Jocelyn and dumping her body in the swamp, but claimed he did not kill her. The New York Post reported.
On Monday, Peña Ramos, also accused of killing the 12-year-old girl, claimed he only kissed Jocelyn and denied any wrongdoing.
On Tuesday, the judge set Rangel Martínez’s bail at $10 million and said he was a potential flight risk. The same conditions applied to Peña Ramos.
Jocelyn’s heartbroken mother, Alexis, appeared in court. She called the two men who took her daughter from her “monsters.”
“She was amazing, I still see her face in my head every day, all day,” Alexis said. “I keep getting little signs about her throughout the days and it has been a very, very difficult time for me and my family,” according to the news outlet.
“She had such a bright future ahead of her and she knew she was going to go far and these monsters took that opportunity from her, from our family.”
District Court Judge Josh Hill presides over a hearing for Johan José Rangel-Martínez, one of two men accused of killing 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray.
Johan José Rangel-Martínez is led into the courtroom on Tuesday, June 25, 2024, in Houston. Capital murder charges were filed against Johan José Rangel Martínez and Franklin José Peña Ramos for the strangulation death of the 12-year-old boy.
Prosecutors said the two men, who lived in the same apartment complex as Nungaray, followed her to a nearby 7/11 shortly after she sneaked out of her home on June 16 and asked her for directions.
While in the store, Nungaray called her 13-year-old boyfriend, who then reported that he heard her talking to two adults.
The suspects then allegedly lured Nungaray under a bridge, where they stripped her to the waist and sexually assaulted her for two hours, according to court documents obtained by Fox 26.
Ramos and Martinez also allegedly tied Nungaray’s hands behind her back during the assault, then strangled her and dumped her body in the swamp.
A passerby would find her hours later, also with her feet tied and her back covered in cuts, Click 2 Houston reports.
Ramos later confessed to police that he had kissed Jocelyn that night, but blamed other parts of the assault and her death on her roommate, Harris County Assistant Prosecutor Megan Long said in court.
She and other prosecutors now claim that Rangel grabbed Jocelyn by the neck, stood on top of her and covered her mouth with his hands in an apparent effort to keep her from screaming.
Martinez allegedly shaved his beard to avoid detection later, and just two days after Nungaray’s body was found, police say Ramos cut off an ankle monitor that was fitted to him when he illegally crossed the border in El Paso on March 28. May.
The discarded ankle monitor was found last Wednesday, NewsNation reported.
He also allegedly asked his employer for extra money at a construction site so he could get out of town.
But the chief contacted police and Ramos was arrested, according to the Houston Chronicle.
In court Monday, Judge Josh Hill set Ramos’ bail at $10 million, double what prosecutors recommended and 10 times the amount requested by the defense.
Alexis Nungaray, Jocelyn’s mother held a candle during a vigil for her daughter Friday night.
The heartbroken mother called the two men who took her daughter from her ‘monsters’
The judge declared that Ramos was an “astronomical” flight risk and that the chances of him returning to court on a lower bond would be “almost zero.”
He noted that, as a new migrant to the area, Ramos had no ties to Houston.
He was released into the country after telling border patrol officials that he feared for his life if he was sent back to Venezuela, and claimed he was going to live with a cousin in Houston, sources told The Post.
Instead, Ramos became roommates with Martínez, who also entered the country illegally on March 14 and had an ankle monitor placed on him. His was withdrawn in May, after Border Patrol determined he had no known criminal history.
Both men now face capital murder charges and could be sentenced to the death penalty if the ongoing investigation reveals evidence that Nungaray was sexually assaulted or kidnapped, District Attorney Kim Ogg said.
Martinez is due to face his own bail hearing on Tuesday, and prosecutors are once again urging the judge to set his bail at $10 million as well, according to Local 21.