Charges Filed in Triple Homicide in Alabama

An undocumented immigrant who is living in the U.S. under Temporary Protected Status (TPS) faces serious charges for the murders of Aurelia Chok and her two children, 17-year-old Niulka and 2-year-old Anthony, in Mobile County, Alabama.

This week, Hector Argueta Guerra, a Salvadoran national and member of the Sur 13 gang, surrendered to authorities in Mobile County. During a court appearance, he was charged with murder and denied bail.

The unsettling charges stem from the discovery of the Chok family’s bodies in a wooded area close to Summerdale, Alabama. The family had been missing since January 31.

Mobile County District Attorney Keith Blackwood commented that an autopsy revealed the family was murdered using a sharp object, calling the crime “ghastly” and “horrifying,” while indicating that certain details were too graphic for the public to hear.

“The findings are horrifying,” Blackwood said. “This family did not deserve to be killed like this.”

Recently, officials from the Department of Homeland Security disclosed that Argueta Guerra was permitted to reside in the U.S. under TPS.

Back in 2015, Argueta Guerra was allegedly involved in an attempted murder case in El Salvador. He was apprehended by federal agents in Texas after fleeing his home country and crossing the U.S.-Mexico border illegally.

After only a month in federal custody, he was released into U.S. territory.

According to a DHS official, “He is a documented Sureños member,” adding that an interim status order from El Salvador meant he was not deported in 2021. The official noted that it’s unclear whether he was traveling back and forth between the two countries during this time.

Additionally, Argueta Guerra is wanted in El Salvador for terrorism and organized crime, with charges dating back to 2016, 2018, and 2024.