Mother Of 9-Year-Old Girl Found Dead In Duffel Bag Wearing ‘Future Princess Hero’ Shirt To Be Charged With Her Murder

Weeks after a young girl was found dead in an abandoned suitcase, her mother is set to be the second person charged with her murder.

Police discovered the body of a girl, later identified as 9-year-old Trinity Love Jones, dumped along a horseback riding trail in Los Angeles County, California on March 5. Emiel Hunt, described as the boyfriend of Jones’ mother, was first arrested and charged in connection with her killing last week, and authorities now plan to charge the girl’s mother, 28-year-old Taquesta Graham, the Associated Press reports.

Graham has already been taken into custody on suspicion of murder, and authorities plan to charge her with murder on Wednesday, Los Angeles County sheriff’s officials said, according to the AP. She was previously extradited from Texas to California and held on a warrant unrelated to her daughter’s death.

Hunt is reportedly scheduled to be arraigned on April 16.

Both Hunt and Graham have a history of child-related offenses. Hunt was previously convicted of felony child abuse in 2005 and sentenced to 12 years in prison, while Graham was previously convicted for involvement with a minor in prostitution, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Authorities have not yet announced a cause of death or a motive in Jones’ killing, according to the AP.

County workers in Hacienda Heights discovered Jones’ body, partially stuffed inside a duffel bag, while doing maintenance in the area earlier, according to KTLA 5 in Los Angeles. She was wearing pajama pants with pandas on them and a pink shirt that read, "Future Princess Hero."

After Jones was positively identified, her family and other mourners set up a memorial near where she was found. Her father, Anthony Jones, told KTLA 5 that his youngest daughter was “full of character, full of life, full of joy.”

“Words can't explain what I'm feeling right now,” he told the outlet. “I just want answers. I just want justice.”