Houston prosecutor slams ‘broken system’ that let in Jocelyn Nungaray’s alleged killers

Harris County’s Democratic district attorney denounced the “broken system” that allowed the two illegal immigrants accused of the brutal murder of 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray to walk free in the United States with only ankle monitors to to follow them.

“They should never have been released when they crossed the border into El Paso, but our system is broken and Jocelyn’s death was the result. And it’s just difficult when you know that something could have been avoided, like the death of a child,” Kim Ogg told local station KPRC on Thursday.

She said ankle monitors have proven completely ineffective. Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel, 21, and Franklin Jose Peña Ramos, 26, are charged with capital murder, thanks to GPS trackers when they entered the United States illegally earlier this year.

“Our immigration system, the border, has been broken for decades. Any Texan knows this. We’ve been seeing it here for a long time. What’s different is we see people from other countries, it’s not just immigrants from Mexico,” Ogg said.

“We’re seeing immigrants from China, from the islands, from South America, like these individuals, it’s new. And I think that increases the risk factor for ordinary people here. So I hope our government will work together in a bipartisan manner to keep the public safe by making our borders more secure.

Days after Nungaray’s June 16 killing, Peña cut off his ankle monitor — which was later recovered by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), Homeland Security sources previously told the Post.

ICE removed Martinez-Rangel from the monitoring program completely because he had no known criminal history, a source said.

“Electronic bracelets give the public a false sense of security. We don’t rely on them as prosecutors because we see too many problems with people who are supposed to be under surveillance and yet aren’t, and that’s the case with these two men,” Ogg said .

As of June 15, ICE was monitoring more than 19,000 released migrants in the country with ankle monitors, according to federal data.

Ogg also said authorities were alerted to the suspects by a cousin who received a call from the two Venezuelan nationals after Jocelyn’s murder.

Martinez-Rangel and Peña allegedly lured Jocelyn under a bridge after she ran away from home the night she was killed. The two illegal immigrants allegedly stripped her naked to the waist and assaulted her for two hours, according to disturbing court documents.

Jocelyn’s feet and hands were bound and she was covered in cuts, according to KPRC.

The two illegal immigrants were seen that night on surveillance video entering a 7-Eleven alongside Jocelyn before accompanying her to the bridge, where her lifeless body was found the next morning, reports said. authorities.

Peña Ramos and Martinez-Rangel are being held on $10 million bail.

Ogg said she hoped to get the death penalty, but ran up against Texas law that requires more evidence because of the victim’s age.

The possibility of a death sentence depends on the results of a rape kit, which has not yet been released.

Ogg also said the case could change if there was evidence that both men had criminal records in Venezuela, but said that since the country is not cooperating with U.S. authorities, much is unlikely to happen. be revealed.

Nungaray will be laid to rest on Thursday at a funeral which will be open to the public.