2 arrested after dead infant found in motel freezer, Dallas police say

Credit: DaytonDailyNews

Authorities have charged two people in connection with the discovery last week of a 3-week-old boy’s body inside a motel room freezer, Dallas police said.

Officials charged Felicia Vasquez, 32, and Arturo Espinoza, 37, with tampering with evidence, identified as a human corpse. Officers said Friday that Vasquez had been arrested overnight. Espinoza was already in Dallas County Jail on unrelated charges.

According to KTVT, police identified Vasquez and Espinoza as the parents of the child. The baby's cause and manner of death remained unclear Thursday.

Authorities said Vasquez and Espinoza concealed the boy's body and failed to report his death, as required by law. Police found the infant's body Dec. 28 inside a freezer in a room at the Days Inn on the 8300 block of South Lancaster Road, near Interstate 20, according to The Dallas Morning News.

Officials with Texas Child Protective Services told KXAS-TV that Vasquez and Espinoza have two other young children, aged 1 and 2, who have since been placed in foster care. The couple also has seven other children, KXAS-TV reported, who all live with other relatives.

Authorities continue to investigate.

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