A large ju judge in Webb County, Texas, charged the man nearly a decade after allegedly attempting to sexually assault the mother of nine children and killing her while walking home from work.
Using advanced forensic law, investigators from the Texas Rangers and Laredo Police Department identified 42-year-old Sergio Mendes, who was identified as the culprit who allegedly killed 33-year-old Janet Escamira Jaramiro of Laredo, Texas in 2016.
In a press release, the Texas Rangers said on May 18, 2016, Jaramiro quit his job home around midnight, but she did not reach her destination.
Jaramillo's body was found under a skate ramp shortly after dawn at Seven Flags Parks by employees of the Laredo Parks and Recreation Department.
DNA links a California man to a 1979 cold case murder.
Sergio Mendes was charged earlier this month with allegedly murdering Janet Escamilla Jaramiro on May 18, 2016. (Texas Rangers)
Law enforcement officials say Seven Flag Spark is just one block from where Jaramiro lived.
Investigators learn that the victim was brutally strangled after an attempted sexual assault.
During the investigation, the detective reviewed the surveillance video footage and showed that Jaramiro was walking with an unknown person about 30 minutes after leaving work.
DNA samples tie with a 40 year old cold case murder of a Texas woman and a 40 year old woman
Sergio Mendes was charged earlier this month with allegedly murdering Janet Escamilla Jaramiro on May 18, 2016. (Texas Rangers)
Police described the suspect as being short, tall with trimmed hair and a garbage bag, which could have been because it had rained that night.
However, at the time there was not enough evidence to arrest the suspect in the Jaramiro case.
However, in 2021, investigators were able to obtain funding from the Department of Justice (DOJ) after the lawsuit was identified as being eligible for the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) Sexual Assault Kit Initiative (SAKI) program.
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Pipette the samples into vials to extract DNA evidence in the forensic lab. (Andrew Brooks via Getty Images)
The funding allows agencies across the United States to further investigate unresolved sexual assaults and sexually related murders.
Investigators used the funds to conduct sophisticated DNA testing and ultimately identified Mendes as the suspect.
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On March 12th, the large ju judge indicted Mendes. He is currently serving a 10-year sentence in Edinburg, Texas for an unrelated crime.
