Houston woman sentenced to 40 years in prison for murder, kidnapping | Texas

Houston, TX – A Houston woman was sentenced Tuesday to 40 years in prison for the murder of a friend and the subsequent kidnapping of the victim’s newborn baby, according to Harris County Prosecutor Kim Ogg.

Erika Miranda-Alvarez, 35, pleaded guilty to the fatal beating of Carolina Flores-Miranda, 33, and the kidnapping of her 6-week-old baby on Dec. 19, 2017. The victim’s body was found by members from the family to their apartment in the Aldine neighborhood, leading to a two-day search by multiple law enforcement agencies for the missing baby.

Miranda-Alvarez was discovered with the child at her apartment complex in the 9700 block of South Gessner, more than 30 miles from the murder scene. According to law enforcement, Miranda-Alvarez, who had recently suffered a miscarriage, killed her friend with the intention of raising the victim’s baby as her own.

During questioning, Miranda-Alvarez initially admitted only to the kidnapping, saying she found her friend dead and took the baby. However, Assistant District Attorney Casey Smith, who prosecuted the case, said Miranda-Alvarez planned the crime, even telling a friend days before the killing that she was having his baby.

Smith noted that Miranda-Alvarez’s actions, including throwing the victim’s cell phone into the toilet tank, indicated that she knew what she was doing was wrong. The victim’s family was in court Tuesday to witness Miranda-Alvarez’s sentencing.

Miranda-Alvarez must serve at least half of his prison sentence before being eligible for parole and cannot appeal the conviction or sentence.