Franklin Pena Ramos, a 26-year-old Venezuelan national, was assigned a $10 million bail after being accused of the capital murder of 12-year-old Jocelyn Nunagray, found strangled in a North Houston creek last week. As reported by ABC13, the presiding judge labeled Pena Ramos a flight risk during the Monday hearing.
Additional details emerged in court, where it was revealed that Pena Ramos was on an ankle monitor provided by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) at the time of the murder. In a tragic sequence of events, investigators believe Jocelyn snuck out from her home on June 16, later being confronted by Pena Ramos and his co-accused, 22-year-old Johan Jose Martinez Rangel. The men are alleged to have lured her under a bridge and kept her for two hours before her death, ABC13 detailed.
Both suspects, Pena Ramos and Martinez, who is also from Venezuela, had crossed into the country illegally and had been processed by Border Patrol before their release. Martinez is expected to make a court appearance following that of Pena Ramos. Franklin Pena Ramos had had previous encounters with law enforcement, being detained by Border Patrol near El Paso and released with an order to appear, as mentioned in an article from FOX26 Houston.
During the investigation, authorities learned from a witness that Pena Ramos had admitted to doing something bad after a night of partying, expressing a need for money to leave town. Both he and Martinez requested funds from their construction boss post-incident, ABC13 reported.
The district attorney commented on the broader implications of this case. "Our immigration system is broken and if it was ever a case that reflected that, it's this one," Kim Ogg said in a statement. She also mentioned that if evidence of sexual assault or kidnapping surfaces, the men could face the death penalty, as per FOX26 Houston. Jocelyn Nunagray's family expressed relief following the arrests, with her funeral and a celebration of life to be held later this week.
