A Texas mom wanted in the killing of her toddler was arrested in Mexico after nearly 30 years on the run, authorities said. Maria Narez, now 48, had been accused of killing her 3-year-old daughter, Kasandra White, in Fort Worth in November 1996.
Officials said the case centers on allegations that Narez shook, beat and then threw the child against a wall in her home. Court records reviewed by Fox 4 show that a grand jury indicted the then-teen mother the following year, but she disappeared after a judge reduced her bond to $25,000. A warrant was issued in 1997 after the bond was forfeited, and she crossed into Mexico, where she stayed hidden for almost 30 years.
The county District Attorneyโs office said it never stopped working to bring her back to Texas. โThe DAโs office never gave up on bringing Narez back to face the charge against her and answer for the death of her daughter,โ the office said in a statement. Narez is now set to be extradited to Tarrant County to face capital murder charges.
At the time, Narez was a 19-year-old grocery store clerk. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported that she allegedly threw the child after the girl refused to go to bed. Narez later told investigators she was depressed and stressed when she snapped. Fort Worth Police Department Sergeant Fred Pendergraf told the paper that the child was picked up by the chest under the arms and thrown against a wall, where her head struck the edge of a door.
