Laredo couple charged in connection with deceased child found in acid-filled container

Monica Dominguez, 37, was charged with abuse of a human corpse, a state jail felony, tampering with or fabricating physical evidence by altering, destroying or concealing a human corpse, a second-degree felony and two counts of endangering a child. less Monica Dominguez, 37, was charged with abuse of a human corpse, a state jail felony, tampering with or fabricating physical evidence by altering, destroying or concealing a human corpse, a second-degree felony ... more Photo: Webb County Sheriff's Office Photo: Webb County Sheriff's Office Image 1 of / 32 Caption Close Laredo couple charged in connection with deceased child found in acid-filled container 1 / 32 Back to Gallery

A husband and wife have been arrested in connection with the death of a 2-year-old girl whose remains were found in a container in an apartment on Thursday in west central Laredo, according to authorities.

Gerardo Zavala Loredo, 32, and Monica Dominguez, 37, were each charged with abuse of a human corpse, a state jail felony, and tampering with or fabricating physical evidence by altering, destroying or concealing a human corpse, a second-degree felony. Dominguez was also charged with two counts of endangering a child.

Zavala Loredo is being held at the Webb County Jail on a $125,000 bond and Dominguez is being held on a $175,000 bond set by Judge Leticia Martinez, according to court records.

Law enforcement said Dominguez told police that two of her children were not being supervised while they were bathing and that one of them, Rebecka Zavala, ended up drowning. She said she then recruited her husband to help dispose of the body, Webb County District Attorney Isidro "Chilo" Alaniz said.

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Authorities searched the apartment at about 5 p.m. in the 1800 block of Jefferson Street after a concerned neighbor called police.

Alaniz said that during the search, they found the girl's remains in a five-gallon container in a bedroom closet. There appeared to be acid in the container as well, he said.

Alaniz added that an examination of the girl's body will determine whether there were any "injuries consistent with a murder."

"We need to wait to see what the science tells us," he said. "Right now there's more questions than answers," Alaniz added.

CPS has taken custody of four children, ages 1 to 11, who lived at the apartment.

CORRECTION: This article has been updated to correct the charges against Zavala and the spelling of the deceased girl's first name as well as her age.