Remains of Missing Teen Found After House Fire
Officials discovered the remains of a missing teen after a house fire in Arizona in 2020. They charged her parents with murder Friday. Last seen alive in 2016, Ana Loera, 13, was found in the attic of her adoptive parents home. The Phoenix Police Department charged Maribel and Rafael Loera with first degree murder, in addition to several counts of child abuse, concealment of a dead body and arson. In 2020, the couple's 11-year-old daughter called the police in and said she was hungry because her parents left. Maribel, 51, and Rafael, 57 had been gone for two days. According to People, the daughter additionally mentioned that her older sister went missing. Officials removed the girl and two other child from the house after an investigation. They all showed signs of abuse. An hour later, emergency responders received a call about a house fire at the same location. Police believe that Rafael started the fire to end his life. While inside the home, officers discovered Ana's remains within the drywall in the attic. Rafael claimed that Ana became ill in 2017, yet he and his wife waited to get the girl help. After a few days, her condition worsened, and she died on the way to the hospital. Fearing that the police would take their other children, the couple wrapped Ana's body in a blanket and hid her in the walls.
