Cold Case: Arrest Made In 2002 Rape, Murder Of 15-Year-Old Girl
MONTEREY PARK (CBSLA.com) — A cold case is warming up once again after an arrest was recently made in relation to the 2002 murder of a teenage girl in East Los Angeles.
Sheriff's investigators say Rosemary Chavira, 27, was just 15 years old when she joined other suspected gang members in a plot that led to the kidnapping, rape, and murder of her 15-year-old classmate, Brenda Sierra, in 2002.
Chavira was charged Tuesday with felony murder.
Sierra's sister, Fabiola Saavedra, on the tenth anniversary of the murder, renewed a plead for help in solving the case.
"It's been ten years. That's too many years to wait for justice," Saavedra said. "There's too many unsolved cases, and I don't want my sister to be one of those cases."
Investigators say the 15-year-old was walking home from school when she was abducted. They say the kidnapping occurred because Sierra's brother had witnessed a drive-by shooting and had displayed the courage to testify against gang members 10 days before the kidnapping.
"We now know that her abduction was not only in retaliation for his testimony but also to send a message to the neighborhood not to cooperate with law enforcement," Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department Lt. Dave Coleman said.
Coleman says detectives are sending a message of their own.
"This sends a clear signal (that) we don't give up, and this is quite obvious," Coleman said. "We have to praise Brenda's family and her brother for standing up and doing what was right, and unfortunately, Brenda probably gave her life for that."
Coleman says two male suspects are in custody, and they are expected to be charged with Sierra's kidnapping, rape and murder.
A third suspect, identified as George Barasa, is believed to be hiding in Mexico.
Anyone with information about the murder is asked to contact the Sheriff's Department.
