Alexis Nungaray, the Texas mother whose 12-year-old daughter Jocelyn was raped and killed, allegedly by two Venezuelan migrants, told the House Judiciary Committee on Tuesday that the Biden-Harris administration was "responsible" for her child's death.
"Because of the Biden-Harris administration open border policies, catch and release, they were enrolled in the Alternatives to Detention program," Nungaray said of the illegal immigrants accused of killing her child. "This meant that they were released into the United States.
"It was not even a full three weeks later that they would take my daughter Jocelyn Nungaray's life," she said, according to the New York Post.
Nungaray recounted for congressional lawmakers how she learned that her daughter was sexually assaulted, slain, and dumped in a bayou on the outskirts of Houston.
"She was strangled to death. She had no clothing from the waist down. Her hands and her ankles were tied and thrown under the bridge of water like she was nothing but garbage," Nungaray said.
When she woke up on June 17 and realized her daughter had sneaked out of the family home and was missing, Nungaray said she felt terrified. Following a frantic search, she learned her daughter's cellphone was located just two minutes away.
Authorities eventually told her they believed Jocelyn had been killed by Franklin Jose Pena Ramos, 26, and Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel, 22.
The two suspects allegedly bound the young girl's hands before assaulting and strangling her.
Video footage showed Jocelyn and the two men walking near a bridge over the bayou; the Venezuelans were later seen leaving the area alone.
"They were down there for two whole hours," Nungaray said on Tuesday. "I can't even fathom what was going through Jocelyn's mind — the amount of fear she was feeling in the last moments of her life.
"Individuals like that do not have a heart," she added. "They are nothing but monsters who are predators, and those are the kind of individuals that we so openly let into this country."
According to officials, Pena Ramos crossed the border illegally and was released into the U.S. after claiming he feared for his safety if he was sent back to Venezuela. Martinez-Rangel also entered the country illegally and was initially fitted with an ankle monitor. It was reportedly removed after he was found to have no known criminal history.
The Post reported that Nungaray attended an event near the U.S.-Mexico border with former President Donald Trump last month as the Democratic National Convention was concluding in Chicago.
Nicole Wells ✉
Nicole Wells, a Newsmax general assignment reporter covers news, politics, and culture. She is a National Newspaper Association award-winning journalist.
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