The mother of 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray, who was brutally murdered by two illegal immigrants, received a “shocking” phone call from former President Donald Trump just minutes before he was set to take the stage to debate President Biden.
Victoria Galván, best friend of Jocelyn’s mother, Alexis Nungaray, shared how unexpected the call was and how much it meant to the heartbroken mother, whose daughter was strangled and found floating in a swamp just miles from her home in Houston on June 16.
“He was like, ‘I’m actually about to come to a debate’… He offered his condolences and said he would get back to her,” Galvan said. The New York Post.
‘He wanted to… say that he was praying for Alexis and that he had been thinking about her and that he wanted to reach out. He said that he would get back to her in a couple of days… I mean, she was really… we were all in shock,’ Galvan said.
Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel, 22, and Franklin Jose Pena Ramos, 26, both Venezuelan citizens, were arrested and charged with capital murder. Both are being held on $10 million bail.
Alexis Nungaray approaches the casket of her 12-year-old daughter, Jocelyn Nungaray, during her graveside service Thursday in Houston.
Former President Donald Trump talks about immigration and the border during Thursday night’s presidential debate
Jocelyn Nungaray, 12, was brutally murdered on June 16 by two Venezuelan migrants
Immigration and the border was one of the hot topics the candidates addressed during Thursday’s debate.
Trump spoke of recent murders committed by unauthorized immigrants entering the country illegally as the country faces unprecedented levels, including the horrific death of young Jocelyn Nungaray.
Weeks before the murder of the preteens, Peña Ramos and Rangel Martínez had been released into the country despite being intercepted by border agents.
During the debate, Trump did not name Jocelyn, but did discuss recent killings that authorities said were committed by undocumented immigrants.
The other young women killed but not identified were Laken Riley, a 22-year-old nursing student killed in Georgia while jogging in February, and Rachel Morin, a 37-year-old mother of five, also killed while jogging on a trail in Maryland in August 2023.
“They are killing our citizens at a level we have never seen before. And you are reading it. Like these incredible young women of the last days,” Trump said.
‘One of them, I just spoke to the mother. They just had a funeral for this girl. She has 12 years old. “What has happened is horrible.”
Johan José Martínez-Rangel, one of two men accused of killing 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray, is led out of the courtroom by officers on Tuesday.
Franklin Peña Ramos, one of the two men accused of killing the young woman, leaves the courtroom after being set on $10 million bail.
On May 28, an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agent fitted Peña Ramos with a GPS ankle monitor after crossing in El Paso, Texas, but had cut it off by the time the two were arrested for killing Jocelyn. Nungaray.
Johan José Rangel Martínez, 21, was also released after being intercepted by border agents on March 14, just over three months before Jocelyn was killed.
Ramos had told agents he planned to live with his cousin in Houston, but the tracker was only set to monitor his movements for 21 days, and he was sharing an apartment with Martinez when he was arrested.
Last week, both men were charged with capital murder and investigators are awaiting test results to confirm whether Jocelyn was raped in addition to murder.
Galván and Jocelyn’s mother shared that Jocelyn couldn’t believe Trump had called and all the attention the case has generated.
White doves fly after being released during a graveside service for Jocelyn on Thursday.
Thursday was the funeral and celebration of life held for Jocelyn.
In his obituary there was a line from a Billie Eilish song, ‘Things fall apart and time breaks your heart.’
‘We understand all about things falling apart and broken hearts. Because on June 17th, our hearts were broken when our angel, Jocelyn Lisel Nungaray, got her wings in heaven.’
‘Rest in peace, dear Jocelyn. Your light will continue to shine in our hearts, now with angel wings to guide us.’