In February, four children died and three others were injured in a fire at a home day care center that was owned and operated by 22 year old Jessica Tata in West Houston.
Investigators said Tata left seven children alone in the home while she went shopping. A pot of oil left on a burning stove sparked the fire while she was gone.
Days after the fire, Tata left the country.
The families of the four victims – Shomari Dickerson, Elizabeth Kajoh, Elias Castillo and Kendyll Stradford – have been waiting for justice ever since.
The U.S. Marshals added Tata to their 15 Most Wanted fugitive list on March 4. The U.S. Marshals worked domestically and with international investigative resources in Port Harcourt, Nigeria, to bring Tata to justice.
She was captured Saturday in Port Harcourt, Nigeria, by Interpol and U.S. Department of State Diplomatic Security Agents. She was put on a plane and arrived in the U.S. at 5 a.m. Monday, where she was subsequently booked into the Fulton County Jail in Georgia.Tata will be extradited to Texas to face charges of manslaughter, reckless injury to a child, abandoning a child and unlawful flight to avoid prosecution.
"When Jessica Tata chose to flee from the consequences of her actions that left four innocent children dead, we made her capture a top priority" said Geoffrey Shank, U.S. Marshals Service Acting Assistant Director of Investigative Operations Division. "I thank our deputies, and domestic and international partners, for their tireless persistence in bringing this fugitive to justice."
No comments:
Post a Comment