Autopsy results have revealed that a 3-year-old Donna-area girl found unresponsive and with signs of prolonged abuse died Thursday from blunt force trauma, as authorities continue the search for the victim’s father and have charged the mother.
The Hidalgo County Sheriff’s Office confirmed the results from the county’s forensic pathologist who ruled the death a homicide Friday.
Sheriff’s investigators arrested Wendy Sarai Rivera, 25, the mother of the child who has yet to be identified, on charges of failure to report a felony and injury to a child. She was arraigned Friday and is being held on $2.5 million in bonds.
Investigators now have an arrest warrant on a capital murder charge for the father, Jose Manuel Uresti, 23, and continue to search for him with the help of federal law enforcement.
Deputies responded to a call about an unresponsive child in the 9700 block of Klarissa Drive in rural Donna at about 4:34 p.m. That child would later be pronounced dead about an hour later, at 5:32 p.m., after being transported to Edinburg Children’s Hospital, the sheriff’s office said in a news release.
The toddler had suffered injuries that included burns and bite marks, bruising and lacerations, the sheriff’s office said a preliminary investigation revealed.
The sheriff’s office also said that the mother, Rivera, admitted to knowing about her daughter’s injuries but did not report it.
The sheriff’s office is asking for the public’s help in providing more information that could aid the investigation by calling (956) 383-8114, or remain anonymous by calling the Hidalgo County Crime Stoppers Hotline at (956) 668-TIPS (8477) or submitting an anonymous tip through the P3 TIPS app.
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