The body of a small child was found on March 4, 2014, in a toy chest of Tucson’s south side.
On the afternoon of March 4, Tucson Police Department officers responded to a report of found human remains at a residence in the 700 block of West Idaho Street. Officers confirmed that there were human remains of a small child on the property.
Detectives responded to continue the investigation. They learned that the home was vacant and the landlords were cleaning up the property when they discovered the remains in a toy chest in the back yard of the residence. Detectives determined that the previous tenants of the residence were 45-year old Martin Barreras and 39-year old Raquel Barreras. The two have 5 children in common. Those children include a 19-year old daughter, a 12-year old son, a 7-year old daughter, a 4-year old daughter and a 3-year old son.
Detectives were able to locate the parents and four of the children at a residence in the 100 block of West Pennsylvania Street. Detectives believe that the remains found at the Idaho address were that of the 3-year old son, Roman Barreras.
Further investigation led to the arrest of the parents. Ms. Barreras was charged with 1 count of 1st Degree Murder and 1 count of Child Abuse. Mr. Barreras was charged with 1 count of Child Abuse. Both were booked into the Pima County Jail. The investigation is ongoing at this time.
