Couple lived with bodies of 3-year-old and 5-year-old they killed until 'little by little' the smell became too much: DA

A Colorado pistillate allegedly orchestrated the killing of her boyfriend's 2 young children with his assistance — hiding 1 of their bodies successful a instrumentality filled with "hardened concrete" and the different successful a car trunk for astir a decade.

Corena Minjarez, 37, of Pueblo County, is facing 2 counts of first-degree murder of a unfortunate nether 12 years aged by a idiosyncratic successful a presumption of spot and 2 counts of maltreatment of a corpse for the 2018 slayings of Jesus Dominguez Jr., 5, and Yesenia Dominguez, 3, according to tribunal records. Her boyfriend, Jesus Dominguez, 37, took a plea woody successful July for second-degree execution and agreed to attest against Minjarez, according to The Pueblo Chieftain. He reportedly took the basal past week and described however helium and Minjarez were utilizing drugs and abusing the children, with Minjarez allegedly struggling to potty bid some of them with Dominguez.

According to the Chieftain, Dominguez testified that Minjarez would unit the kids to beryllium wrong integrative bags portion driving with them due to the fact that she didn't privation to get urine successful her car. One alleged incidental starring up to the children's deaths saw Minjarez spray Jesus Jr. down with a high-pressure h2o nozzle astatine a self-service car wash, causing lacerations adjacent the boy's groin, according to his father.

Love existent crime? Sign up for our newsletter, The Law&Crime Docket, to get the latest real-life transgression stories delivered close to your inbox.

Dominguez testified that connected March 14, 2018, helium and Minjarez were driving the children to school. Yesenia had soiled herself and was forced to beryllium connected the car level successful a trash container erstwhile the 3-year-old allegedly stopped breathing successful the backseat, according to the Chieftain. The mates thought astir bringing her to a section infirmary but refused owed to signs of maltreatment that she was showing, per Dominguez, including wound marks and injuries to 1 of Yesenia's hands that Minjarez allegedly caused months earlier.

With Jesus Jr. inactive successful the backseat, Minjarez and Dominguez allegedly drove to a location connected Sundance Court and enactment Yesenia's assemblage wrong a tote earlier yet moving her to a suitcase and placing the luggage successful Minjarez's trunk aft being evicted, according to Dominguez and prosecutors. Dominguez claimed his lad ne'er asked what happened to his sister.

Weeks later, the brace allegedly lived successful Minjarez's Pontiac, wherever Yesenia's assemblage was located, according to Dominguez. The girl's remains could beryllium smelled "little by little" arsenic the mates began snorting Percocet and methamphetamine wrong the vehicle, with Jesus Jr. staying wrong the car with them arsenic well, his dada alleged.

The lad showed advancement with his potty grooming but started "going backwards," according to Dominguez, which allegedly caused much problems with Minjarez.

The mates was retired picking up drugs successful April 2018 with Jesus Jr. erstwhile Minjarez allegedly told Dominguez that the lad had stopped breathing portion sitting successful the backseat, according to the father. Dominguez said Jesus Jr. was sitting adjacent integrative bags and blankets, and his lips had turned purple. The pair, erstwhile again, refused to spell to a infirmary and alternatively took Jesus Jr. to a tract adjacent the Pueblo Dam, wherever they allegedly stuffed him wrong a suitcase with layers of trash bags, according to Dominguez.

Prosecutors accidental Minjarez and Dominguez allegedly transported Yesenia's assemblage to a portion astatine the Kings Storage installation astatine 617 W Sixth Street successful Pueblo and stowed Jesus Jr. distant successful the trunk of the Pontiac, which was yet taken to a section scrapyard. The mates began surviving retired of the retention portion until they were evicted, starring Minjarez's parent to observe a trash tin filled with factual portion helping them wide everything out, constabulary reported.

Minjarez's parent ended up being the 1 who called the cops successful January 2024 aft she grew suspicious of the instrumentality wrong Minjarez and Dominguez's retention unit, according to prosecutors. She allegedly told investigators astir a fig of disturbing signs she noticed implicit the years, including a "foul smell" coming from Minjarez's car successful the summertime of 2018.

On Jan. 20, officers responded to Kings Storage and allegedly recovered the container.

More from Law&Crime: Pregnant pistillate recovered stuffed successful sealed retention tote was kept successful suspect's ablution for 4 days aft dying nether 'suspicious circumstances': Police

"The metallic instrumentality was searched, and the remains of a kid were located wrong the container," Pueblo Police said successful a press release. It was Yesenia and her assemblage was severely decomposed, with her autopsy study listing the mode of decease arsenic "homicidal violence" but with nary origin owed to the severity of the decomposition. Police located Jesus Jr.'s assemblage 2 weeks later.

"During the probe detectives located a conveyance belonging to a Corena Minjarez astatine a section scrap yard," constabulary said. "On February 6th, 2024, Police executed a hunt warrant connected that vehicle. Police located a suitcase successful the trunk of the vehicle. In the suitcase were the remains of a young antheral child."

An autopsy revealed that the remains were those of Jesus Jr., and that helium had besides been a unfortunate of "homicidal violence." The probe revealed that nary missing idiosyncratic reports were ever filed for him oregon Yesenia.

Dominguez, who accepted his plea woody connected July 10, allegedly had a tumultuous narration with Minjarez, according to the Chieftain, citing grounds from section constabulary detectives astatine an October 2024 preliminary hearing.

As the narration soured, prosecutors accidental Minjarez allegedly took her frustrations and choler retired connected Jesus Jr. and Yesenia, on with increasing highly jealous of the children's biologic mother. Family members of Minjarez allegedly told investigators they were acrophobic implicit Minjarez's attraction of the kids earlier their deaths.

During a erstwhile alleged incident, Minjarez had locked Yesenia successful a country and forced her to decorativeness eating a carrot. Her ain teenage lad allegedly got upset astatine her for being excessively hard connected the kids, according to prosecutors.

A person of Minjarez's told cops she allegedly confessed to hiding Jesus Jr. and Yesenia's bodies successful 2018 aft they some died "the nonstop aforesaid way" of accidental causes.

Minjarez's proceedings is scheduled to proceed done Aug. 29, per the Chieftain. Dominguez is owed to beryllium sentenced connected Sept. 12.