More charges expected against trio in teen captivity case
Prosecutors are expected to file additional charges against three people accused of holding a teenager captive in her bedroom in North Las Vegas for a year.
During a court hearing Monday morning, Chief Deputy District Attorney Stacy Kollins said she is anticipating filing an amended criminal complaint against the co-defendants — Daniel Omezcua; the teen’s mother, Addy Gonzales; and the teen’s grandmother, Maria Pasarin.
Kollins declined to comment on the case following the hearing and did not say what the additional charges might be.
They all currently face a felony charge of child abuse or neglect and a gross misdemeanor count of false imprisonment, court records show.
The three co-defendants have all been released from custody, defense attorney John Turco said. They did not appear in court on Monday.
Turco declined to comment on the case.
Gonzales, Pasarin and Omezcua, who lived in the house with the teen, were arrested Nov. 5 after the 18-year-old was found in a neighbor’s yard drinking water from a hose, according to an arrest report from the North Las Vegas Police Department.
The teen told police that her mother fed her once a day and locked her in a bedroom with little food and without access to a bathroom.
Gonzales has worked for the Clark County School District since 2005 and is currently on unpaid leave from her job as a family learning advocate, the school district has said.
According to the report, the young woman said she had been locked in the bedroom for at least a year and had turned 18 last month.
The teen said she felt like a prisoner in the room, which contained a sheet and two empty dressers, the report said.
Child Protective Services told police that eight prior reports of abuse and neglect were found to be unsubstantiated because the agency did not have enough evidence.
On Monday, Kollins told Justice of the Peace Natalie Tyrrell that she was still waiting to receive records from Child Protective Services.
Tyrrell scheduled a preliminary hearing in the case for Feb. 15.
Contact Katelyn Newberg at knewberg@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0240. Follow @k_newberg on Twitter.
