A 12-year-old girl who had been kidnapped chewed her way through her restraints, breaking her braces in the process, and escaped from a mobile home in rural Dadeville, Alabama. She was found walking down a country road by a good samaritan, who picked her up and dialed 911.
Kidnapped Girl Chewed Out of Her Restraints, Led Authorities to Where Man Had Two Decomposing Bodies: Sheriff #SmartNews https://t.co/Y7WC5fYbYL
— candacemariecooper (@candies2639) August 4, 2022
Sheriff Jimmy Abbett of Tallapoosa County immediately kicked off a kidnapping investigation, which led to the discovery of two decomposing bodies in the mobile home where the little girl had been held. Authorities arrested José Paulino Pascual-Reyes, 37, in nearby Auburn, Ala., on a slew of charges, including kidnapping, capital murder, and abuse of a corpse.
The bodies are believed to be those of the girl’s mother and older brother. Police believe they were killed on or around July 24. Pascual-Reyes, a previously deported illegal immigrant, had been dating the girl’s mother and living with the family since February.
The girl had been restrained to bed posts for about a week, according to a criminal complaint. She had chewed off her restraints — breaking her braces. https://t.co/SbDb0qRlME
— ABC13 Houston (@abc13houston) August 4, 2022
Court records show the little girl was tied to a bedpost for a week, where she was kept in a drugged state, and was repeatedly assaulted.
“I would say she’s a hero,’’ Sherrif Abbett stated. “It’s one of those things we won’t get into until later.”
Police believe that the young girl’s mother, Sandra Vazquez Ceja, 34, was suffocated with a pillow by Pascual-Reyes before he chopped her body into pieces. Pascual-Reyes allegedly beat the girl’s 14-year-old brother to death with his hands and feet. The boy’s name was not released but he too had been chopped up. No one else was found alive at the mobile home.
Watch the sheriff’s press conference:
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