Crime Stories with Nancy Grace - GIRL IN A DUFFEL BAG: 9-year-old girl’s body found stuffed in duffel

Episode Date: March 13, 2019

When Trinity Love Jones was found partially stuffed in a duffel bag along a Los Angeles hiking trail, the 9-year-old girl had not even been reported missing. Her mother and her mom's boyfriend are now suspected in the child's death. Nancy Grace explores the disturbing case with a panel including forensics expert Karen Smith, psychologist Caryn Stark, North Carolina family & divorce lawyer Kathleen Murphy, and Crime Stories reporter John Lemley. Nancy also shares the Amber Alert for a missing Milwaukee 2-year-old girl. Little Noelani Robertson is believed to be with her father, who is on the run after allegedly murdering her mother. Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an iHeart Podcast. Breaking now, an Amber Alert. I'm Nancy Grace. This is Crime Stories, and now our crime news update. Charged and on the run, police seeking Darius Higgins for killing a mom and abducting, kidnapping her baby two-year-old little girl. Right now to Alan Duke. Alan, the mom's dead and the baby's gone. Do we even know if the baby's alive? Well, I'm going to assume and hope that the baby's alive because Darius Higgins, the man who is believed to have taken two-year-old Noelana,

is the father and has been caring for this child for some time. In fact, the shooting allegedly happened when the mother, Sierra Robinson, 24 years old, went to Milwaukee, flew there from Las Vegas in order to get the child back from the father. Why did she leave the baby there anyway? She had lived in Milwaukee but decided that she couldn't care for the two-year-old so she handed the child off to? She had lived in Milwaukee but decided that she couldn't care for the two-year-old so she handed the child off to Darius Higgins while she went to Las Vegas hoping to start a new life. She decided according to an arrest affidavit she decided that she wanted the child back and she flew back to Las Vegas and arranged for the handoff. She was going to meet

Darius Higgins. In fact they were in the car together riding around and according to a friend reminiscing about old times and drinking, but he had another plan. Allegedly took them to a somewhat remote spot in Milwaukee, pulled out an AK rifle and began shooting. The complaint indicates that Sierra no longer wanted to be with him and moved to Vegas, leaving the child with him. Once in Vegas, she tried to get the baby back. Noelani get the baby back from Higgins, and he agreed. So she flies back to Milwaukee, as Alan Duke is telling us, to get the baby. Now, according to the criminal complaint they were set to meet uh there at 22 in fond du lac the woman was wounded in a shooting in the shooting told police she went along but the

child wasn't there instead the mom ends up getting shot, shot dead. Now, what do we know about the possible whereabouts of baby Noelani Robinson? Well, we really don't know. We just know that Higgins, after the shooting, disappeared. He apparently had the child at another place, went, got the child, and then disappeared. They initially put a lookout, when this happened Monday afternoon, for a Cadillac, but it turns out it wasn't that Cadillac. That Cadillac was found later in Miami. He's believed to be in another car. So there's an Amber. Wait a minute. So you're telling me that somehow the Cadillac he's driving

and goes from Milwaukee to Miami. They thought he was in that car because he had had that car previously weeks earlier, but it turns out for some reason the car was actually in Miami. It's not believed that he that quickly was able to make it. So we don't have a clue. No, we don't. We don't. But keep in mind, he is the father of this child, but he allegedly murdered the mother when she came to get this child and then he fled. Milwaukee PD Captain Thomas Casper is begging Higgins to take the baby, Noelani, and drop her off at a safe place, a family member's home, a fire station, a hospital, just anything. Guys, let's listen right now to this press conference regarding an Amber Alert

and the search underway for a 2-year-old little girl, Noelani Robinson, last seen in Milwaukee. Please help us. Help us solve the Amber Alert and bring Noelani Robinson, last seen in Milwaukee. Please help us. Help us solve the Amber Alert and bring Noelani to safety. Her mother has been murdered. Listen. Yesterday at about 1 p.m., Milwaukee police squads were dispatched to a shooting in the 6300 block of North 91st Street. When they arrived, they found two adult females lying on a driveway to an eight-unit apartment building. The first female was 24 years of age, a resident of Nevada, and she was suffering from numerous gunshot wounds.

Although medical attention arrived promptly, she was pronounced dead at the scene. The second female is a 28-year-old Milwaukee resident. She was shot multiple times. She was transported to a local hospital where she's currently being treated. While at the scene, a third person was located, a 35-year-old Milwaukee man, suffered a grazed wound to the left shoulder. He was also transported to a local hospital where he was treated and released. The shooter and suspect has been identified as Darius D-A-R-I-A-Z L. Higgins, 28 years of age. He has previous arrests in Nevada, Minnesota, and Florida. The Cadillac, which was originally described in the Amber Alert, was located overnight in Miami, Florida. That was a vehicle that he had been arrested in in Minnesota last month, and that vehicle has been accounted for.

We are very concerned about the missing two-year-old, Nolani Robinson. Her whereabouts have not been accounted for, and we want to ensure her safety. We are asking Mr Higgins to take her and drop her off someplace safe, a family member's house, a fire station, a hospital, any place safe so that law enforcement can take custody of her. As the chief stated, Mr Higgins is believed to be armed and dangerous, and right now his whereabouts are unknown. If you have information about missing Nolani Robinson,

please call 414-935-7022. Repeat, Milwaukee PD, 414-935-7022. Of course, Dial 911. Crime Stories with Nancy Grace. We're here today to discuss the incident, the case yesterday. Occurred on March 5th, 2019. A child's body was discovered about 10 o'clock. Like the sheriff said, on Hacienda Boulevard, just down the embankment, just south of Kalima Road. The location is just below the Buddhist temple in a equestrian walkway area. Investigators believe that the victim was dumped

at the location sometime during the late evening hours of Sunday, March 3rd, and discovered again on March 5th at 10 o'clock in the morning. The victim was discovered by some county workers that were there clearing some brush and doing maintenance on the equestrian trail. You are hearing the L.A. County Sheriff, Scott Hoagland, telling reporters that L.A. County workers doing maintenance on a trail find the body. A body in a duffel bag. How does a body fit in a little duffel bag? And then very disturbing news emerges that they believe it's the body of a nine-year-old little girl.

At first, the big question was, who is the girl in the duffel? I'm Nancy Grace. This is Crime Stories. Thank you for being with us. Listen to the sheriff. The victim was, in fact, found partially inside of a black roll-away type duffel bag. The upper portion of the victim was protruding from that bag. The victim is a female black. Originally yesterday, we determined that the victim was roughly 7 to 10 years old. But after further investigation with our investigators in the coroner's office we now believe that our victim may be anywhere between the ages of eight and 13 years old she's approximately four foot five inches tall weighs about 55 pounds and is skinny

in nature it just goes on and on the search for the identity of the girl in the duffel. Joining me, forensics expert Karen Smith out of the Florida jurisdiction, renowned psychologist out of Manhattan, Karen Stark. You can find her at karenstark.com and no stranger to a courtroom, North Carolina lawyer Kathleen Murphy. Joining me right now, CrimeOnline.com investigative reporter John Limley. John Limley, let's start with the discovery of a duffel bag. What happened? Nancy, it was around 1030 Pacific time last Tuesday morning. This is March 5th. County workers were clearing some brush along South Hacienda Boulevard in a Los Angeles suburb, Hacienda Heights. The workers were cleaning an embankment along an equestrian trail that's just below a big Buddhist temple there.

The crew all of a sudden stops dead in their tracks. They come upon a big black roll-away type duffel bag. And we were from the outset wondering how a body could fit in a duffel bag. Well, it didn't really. There is a body sticking out of the bag, the upper portion of a body, what appears to be a young girl wearing a pink t-shirt. Now, when police arrive and examine the body, they estimate that it is indeed a young girl, as we've heard, probably between the ages of 8 and 13. That long-sleeved pink shirt has a graphic on the front. It's a cute graphic. It's a play on the phrase, future princess. Instead, in this case,

princess is crossed out, and it looks like someone has written the word hero instead. The girl is also wearing a pair of black and white sweatpants or pajama bottoms with a panda print on them. Investigators at the scene are baffled on many different levels. Not only do they not know who the girl is, but there's also no obvious signs of trauma. It's going to be up to the medical examiner to figure that out. However, the L.A. County Sheriff's Department feel that they do have enough evidence right there on the scene to call the child's death suspicious. Well, I guess so. She's in a duffel bag, John Limley. I mean, you don't need to tell me a whole lot more, but we do know the girl was not bound

or tied up. And you may be wondering when you find remains, how do you determine the age of a skeleton or the age of a dead body? It has to do with the teeth, for instance, whether adult teeth are coming in, how many baby teeth are missing. It has to do with the length and the width of the skeleton, of the femur, of the arms, of the pelvis region on girls. There's many, many ways that you can determine almost exactly the age of a dead body when you're talking about children. To forensics expert Karen Smith, there are other ways to determine the age of a skeleton or a body, Karen. Right. Besides the teeth and the length of the femur, the length of the ulna, some of the bones, we have plates in our skull.

And when those plates grow together, they're called suture marks. And those sutures, as you age, they will calcify and they'll start to disappear. And that happens in your 40s and your 50s. When you're very young like that, those sutures in the skull are very, very prominent. And when you look at that, that is another way to tell the age of the skeleton, whether it's a five-year-old or a 13-year-old, because that is a very progressive thing. They have charts and they can look at that. And that's how they determined the age, but somewhere between eight and 13. There apparently were no obvious signs of trauma to the body. Listen to the sheriff, Lieutenant Scott Hoagland. Investigators did not

observe any obvious signs of trauma to the victim's body. At this time this incident is being ruled as a suspicious death investigation and the cause of death will be determined at an autopsy that should be taking place the next day or two. The motive at this time is unknown. The purpose of this conference here today is to reach out to the public, the community, to find out if anybody saw anything suspicious in nature during those time frames on Hacienda Boulevard. There is a turnout on Hacienda Boulevard just south of Kalima Road where we're looking for any type of witnesses that may have been traveling

that area, that may have seen a vehicle pulled over to the side. Anybody with information regarding our victim, who our sketch artist at Homicide Bureau created a sketch. We are looking for anybody that recognizes this individual, recognizes the suitcase, as well as the clothing that the victim was found in. Joining me, Karen Stark, psychologist out of Manhattan. You can find her at karenstark.com. Karen, what does it say to you that as they are searching to identify this nine-year-old girl stuffed in a duffel bag, thrown off the side of a horse path. What does the mode of disposal of the body mean? That means that someone absolutely had no regard for this child. That's what struck me, Nancy, the fact that he said she was dumped on the side of the road. There's no killing. They're taking a body, a person, a child, and stuffing them in a suitcase. Think about that. When we think about our children, the children that we know,

who would do that to a child? What's so unusual to CrimeOnline.com investigative reporter John Limley is no one resembling this girl had even been reported missing. Is that correct? That is indeed the case. There was no missing persons reports to match what investigators found. The emotional vigil tonight at Hacienda Heights. Dozens gathered to honor the young girl they never knew. Remains of that girl were found earlier this week and tonight. She has still not been identified. That's right. People gathered at the scene this evening to keep THE GIRL WAS FOUND IN THE HOSPITAL AND SHE WAS FOUND IN THE HOSPITAL. THE REMAINS OF THE GIRL WERE FOUND EARLIER THIS WEEK AND SHE HAS STILL NOT BEEN

IDENTIFIED. PEOPLE GATHERED AT THE SCENE THIS EVENING TO KEEP HER STORY ALIVE. KCAL 9'S RICHEL KIM IS LIVE TONIGHT IN HACIENDA HEIGHTS WHERE SHE SPOKE WITH SOME OF THE PEOPLE AT THAT VIGIL.

SUSIE AND JEFF, HERE AT THE ENTRANCE TO THE TRAIL WHERE THE GIRL'S BODY WAS FOUND, YOU CAN SEE PEOPLE HAVE LEFT THEIR EXPRESSIONS OF LOVE. WELL, EARLI too far away, a sea of strangers became her family. A song of faith to help bring comfort, words to help bring understanding to faces of confusion, sorrow, and shock. Tonight, remembering a young girl whose death has outraged and saddened a the remember this little girl who remains unidentified after her body was found partially inside a duffel bag dumped near the skyline trail at kalima road and hacienda boulevard tuesday morning you are

hearing from our friends at wcal tv that was jeff vaughn suzy sue and also rachel kim and people attending a vigil for a little girl they don't know as a matter of fact nobody knows who she is all we know is this is an unidentified nine-year-old girl stuffed in a duffel bag take a listen to this things like this happen we need to come together and be a voice for this little girl especially that she doesn't have a family. And I think that that's important that you know, she's everybody's child. This one feels like it's the one of the worst ones I've ever, um, heard about the thought that this

little girl was stuffed in a in a suitcase like bag was just devastating to me. Sheriff's investigators are trying to identify the girl. They say she's black, 18 years old, and has a black body. The police say they're trying to find her in a suitcase like bag was just devastating to me. Sheriff's investigators are trying to identify the girl.

They say she's black, 8 to 13 years old. She was wearing a pink shirt with Future Princess Hero written on it, panda print pants, and no shoes. Authorities aren't sure how long the girl had been dead or how she was killed. Who is the girl in the duffel? That's the big question. I'm listening to the heartbreak and everyone's voice at the vigil as they desperately try to find out who is this nine-year-old little girl. No one has reported her missing. There's not a clue, but they managed to make a sketch, a rough sketch. I'm looking at it right now.

It's of her as they believe she looked in life with her hair pulled back on top of her head in a bun. She's wearing a pink, kind of a crew neck collar. And it looks to me like she's got pierced ears. That sketch goes out. That sketch goes out on the airwaves. It's everywhere. And then, strongly enough that that could be a girl in their family. So they submit DNA. An investigation is underway. The DNA matches. And it's at that point that they discover that this is Trinity Love Jones. You know, I'm looking at the bulletin, special bulletin put out by L.A. County

and Karen Smith. It's very detailed. It has the little girl's T-shirt, Future Princess Hero. It's pink. It's jewel neck. It's long sleeved. And they've even got it rolled up. She must have had it rolled up

to her elbows. You know how you roll up a shirt that may be a little bit too long for you up to the elbows and she's got on leggings that look like they're navy blue and white or black and white and a little bit of a bell bottom. So they've got a sketch of her sitting there cross-legged in this outfit with her hair pulled up on top of her head. And then they have a picture of the actual shirt she was wearing and the actual pants she was wearing. And all of that is on the special bulletin that is disseminated. Also, the duffel bag, the black duffel in which she is found, and also a close-up of the sketch by the sketch artist. And, you know, I've had to do that at trial before when I had an unidentified body, Karen Smith. And I worked very, very closely with a a sketch artist and this is what was so amazing

in that case it was a serial killer I got him on one murder of an unidentified Jane Doe so her body had somewhat decomposed the sketch artist did the recreation of her face. Can I tell you how important that was? I never got an ID on her, but, okay, but when I got the killer, I went looking in his record and I found where he had been accused of, and this Jane Doe had died of strangulation, where he had been accused of strangling his girlfriend. Okay. So I go find the girlfriend. I remember right now it was raining outside and I was beating on her door.

She came to the door. I told her what happened and I looked at her and I could not believe my eyes, Karen Smith, because she looked just like the sketch of the dead girl. Okay. Wow. And as it turned out, and I argued it to the jury. Oh, and I also found another strangulation rape victim. I was so upset by that, I crashed my car on the way after talking to her. Anyway, long story short, in front of the jury at the end,

I had them look at the rape victim, strangulation victim that lived in the courtroom. And I put up the picture of the dead Jane Doe, sketch recreation, beside a real life picture of the girlfriend that rejected him. They looked like twin sisters. And I went, who would have killed this girl except for the man that was rejected by this girl? And there was just like a dead, I'm getting chills right now because I remember it so well. There was just a quiet in the courtroom. And I turned around and looked at the defendant and he looked at me and just put his head down. I will never, ever forget it. So these sketch artists can make or break a case. How do you go about, how do you go about making a sketch like this from a dead body? Well, you know, she had been, from all reports, deceased for about two days. And,

you know, the decomposition process is going to start. And I don't know the weather conditions in Los Angeles at the time, but it's still wintertime in L.A. So, you know, you're going to deal with the facial features. And let me tell you something about sketch artists. Some of them are extraordinarily good, such as this case. I looked at the photos as well and saw the sketch next to a photograph of Trinity when she was alive. And they were spot on. And those sketch artists really can make or break a case. They deal with the facial features. You know, a lot of times they have to make presumptions because of a little bit of the decomposition process.

But in this case, they did an outstanding job. So in an amazing turn of events, this special bulletin disseminated by the L.A. County sheriffs actually got results. A family member sees it on TV, says, wow, that looks like Trinity Love. They go in, they do DNA testing from an extended family member. Then at the vigil, John Limley, what happens? Reporters were there at the scene of the vigil. They were interviewing the attendees, the organizers, as we've heard. And they interview one man who shocks the reporter because he says that his name is Anthony Jones and that he is the father of this child, Trinity Love Jones. Take a listen to a KTLA TV reporter at the vigil. It's been a w uncertainty for a commun

how someone could murder her body. The girl that t my youngest daughter and won't justice. Antonio Jo imagined the police sketc girl found at the bottom week would turn out to be his daughter, nine-year-old Trinity Love Jones. Words can't describe, but I just want justice for it. I want justice. I want answers. Fun, loving, big heart, bubbly many many characters

little girl that could have been whatever she wanted to be in life crime stories with Nancy Grace you don't know what she went the victim's family. The victim's family is now investigating the murder. Crime stories with Nancy Grace. Uh huh. You don't know what she went through before her life was taken. And this is what I

thought about what they have done to her before they take in her life. Right now there's no motive or suspect information as investigators search for the We would like to care about other people no matter who they are. I'm sorry that you have died, and I'm sorry what happened to you. You were hearing our friends at WCAL-TV. That was Rachel Kim talking with people there at the vigil, Georgia, Washington, and Marlene Contreras, and a 6-year-old little girl, Rebecca Estrada, about what the nine-year-old girl's murder means to everyone. Then a break in the case.

Listen to WCBS-TV's Jeff Nguyen. Her body was found partially inside a duffel bag. At this point, the coroner's office has ruled that this case is a homicide. Now, Antonio Jones, who claims to be the father, says that he learned about the identification of his daughter through a family member who gave DNA samples to investigators. They also say that the body found has a chipped tooth similar to that of Trinity's. And at this point, investigators are not confirming the identity of the body. We are certainly giving the family a lot of space at this point. They do not want to talk to us about who

had custody of Trinity, but they do tell us that there is going to be a news conference by the Sheriff's Department on Tuesday. And they also say at this point, what they want to do is focus on their grief. Can you even imagine learning your daughter's body was stuffed in a duffel bag and found on a horse trail? That's exactly what happened to this dad. I still don't quite understand why no one had reported her missing. To John Limley, I assume that the dad did not have custody of her and did not know she was missing? No, he did not have custody of the child. She actually lived with her mother and her boyfriend. Okay, so that leads me to the mother and the boyfriend. Why had they not reported her

missing? And in a coincidence, take a listen to WCBS-TV anchors Chris Holmstrom and Sarah Donke. The mystery girl found dead in a duffel bag near a hiking trail last week has just been officially identified and we're now told two people have been detained in connection with her death. There's been a lot of new developments in this troubling mystery, especially in the last hour. CBS2's Jeff Nguyen, he LIVE AT A MEMORIAL FOR THE GIRL IN HOSCINDA HEIGHTS WITH THE SLATE-BREAKING DETAILS. GOOD EVENING, JEFF.

AND GOOD EVENING TO YOU. THIS IS THE GROWING MEMORIAL FOR TRINITY JONES. I'M GOING TO STEP ASIDE BECAUSE I REALLY WANT TO DRAW YOUR ATTENTION TO THE PICTURE OF THE LITTLE GIRL WITH A BRIGHT SMILE.

ABOUT AN HOUR AGO, THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT CONFIRMED THAT SHE WAS THE VICTIM IN A MURDER CASE, AND THEY ALSO TELL US THAT TWO PEOPLE HAVE BEEN DETAINED AS PERSONS OF INTEREST WHILE THIS INVESTIGATION IS STILL UNDERWAY.

WE'LL TALK TO THEM ABOUT THAT IN A BIT. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. confirmed that she was the victim in a murder case. And they also tell us that two people have been detained as persons of interest while this investigation is still fluid. So, long story short, she's living with her mom and her boyfriend, and suddenly there are two persons of interest. You know what I always say, Kathleen Murphy, there is no coincidence in criminal law. Kathleen Murphy, now we are learning the very latest. Two have been arrested after the body of a nine-year-old girl found stuffed in a duffel bag on a horse trail was identified by family and police in L.A. County. This horrific discovery made by workers on a trail there in Hacienda Heights.

It's been ruled a homicide. And Jackie Howard, which I say with a little bit of disdain right now, is here in the studio with me. Alan Duke Wisely is keeping his mouth shut in LA because she actually said, why do you keep saying murder? You know what? Don't start with me, Jackie. Because if Kathleen is just like Tot Mom, if this isn't a murder, then why is she discarded by the side of the road? Why is this girl stuffed in a duffel and thrown on a horse trail hoping nobody would find her? And just like in Tot Mom, a maintenance worker there in Tot Mom, a maintenance worker. And there in Tot Mom was a utility worker. I'm talking about Kelly Anthony, the two-year-old tot that was, many people, including myself, believe murdered by her mother, Casey Anthony, mom from hell.

So long story short, of course it's a murder. She didn't just trip down the stairs and die and they go, oh, you know what? Instead of having a funeral, let's just stick her in a duffel bag and throw her on a horse on a horse trail Kathleen please Jackie I'm since you obviously don't know enough to be embarrassed I'm embarrassed for you okay go ahead Kathleen yes it's very similar she wasn't reported missing she's found in the woods and this woman's gonna blame everybody but. But she's the one that was living with a man that's not this child's father. She's a convicted sex offender. It's a bad situation.

Okay, wait, wait, wait, wait. Right there. John Limley, you think you might have left out a major fact? The mother is a registered sex offender? I have to find out from a lawyer in North Carolina. Well, and to go even further with that, it is claimed by family members, not police, that the persons of interest that the police are holding. They've been arrested. And P.S., when you say the police are, excuse me, John Limley, the police are holding, when police are holding

somebody, they're arrested, John. They're not just holding them for a cup of tea and a crumpet, okay? They're arrested. Correct. For this. Right. And the names are... I have so much fun fussing at you. Okay, go ahead. But we have to get things right. We have to clarify. Yes, you do. And the people of interest, according to the family, are the child's mother, Tequesta Graham, and her boyfriend, Emile Hunt. Authorities have not confirmed this. However, jail records do show that Hunt is in custody. However, Graham is not listed in the jail's inmate database. Now, doing a little searching, we very quickly discovered that according to California's sex offender registry, Tequesta Graham is a registered sex offender. And this is a big point.

Okay, wait a minute. Wait a minute. Whoa, whoa, whoa. You said the mom? Yes. Not the boyfriend. No, the mom. Not the live-, wait, wait. You said the mom? Yes. Not the boyfriend. No, the mom. Not the live-in. The mom. This is the mom. Okay, I'm just letting that just sink in for a moment,

because normally I hear about the boyfriend, the dad, the ex. They're all registered sex offenders. Who's not a registered sex offender? The mom is a registered sex offender? That's true. Taquesta Graham is registered for the offense of enticing a minor female for prostitution. And that was from 19, rather 2009. So what I'm understanding is that that could not have been who she, she was getting a girl, she's convicted and is a registered sex offender, getting a young girl, a minor, to prostitute.

Now, I know that that's not this little girl, Trinity Love Jones, her daughter, because Trinity's not old enough to have been that little girl. Wow. Thanks, Mom. So why was she in the home, John Lilly? Why was she living with the mom and not the dad, the mom and her live-in? Well, San Bernardino County court records say she received a suspended prison term, time served in jail, and probation. And then there was a hearing to revoke her probation. And all of these charges involved a minor under the age of 16. And as you've noted, there's no way that this

could be Trinity, that she was enticing the female for prostitution, because 2009 would have been roughly around the time she was probably pregnant with Trinity. John Limley, you did not answer my question. So I will move on to Kathleen Murphy, who seemingly has a very firm grasp of the facts. John, Kathleen Murphy, why? One day you'll look back and laugh. Kathleen Murphy. Kathleen Murphy, why was she living with the sex offender mom and the live-in? Because nobody cares in the social services community. If something like this is not reported and somebody

doesn't follow up, it is very easy for a child to get lost in the system. Where were the grandparents? Where was the father? Where were the aunts? Where were the uncles? Where was the child support ANSWERS. I'M SO UPSET TO HEAR ABOUT THIS SITUATION. QUESTIONS TONIGHT. THEY WANT TO KNOW WHY TRINITY'S MOTHER, TOQUESTA GRAHAM, WHO'S A REGISTERED SEX OFFENDER, HAD TRINITY IN HER CUSTODY. AND WHO IS TRINITY'S MOTHER'S BOYFRIEND, EMIL HUNT. IT'S MORE THAN JUST THE MOTHER

AND THE BOYFRIEND. WE HAVE TO GET TO THE BOTTOM OF IT. FAMILY MEMBERS SAY THEY ARE CONCERNED ABOUT THEIR SON'S SITUATION. THEY SAY THEY ARE CONCERNED ABOUT THEIR SITUATION.

THEY SAY THEY ARE CONCERNED ABOUT THEIR SITUATION. THEY SAY THEY ARE CONCERNED ABOUT THEIR SITUATION. THEY SAY THEY ARE CONCERNED ABOUT THEIR SITUATION. THEY SAY THEY ARE CONCERNED ABOUT THEIR SITUATION. THEY SAY THEY ARE CONCERNED ABOUT THEIR SITUATION. IS TRINITY'S MOTHER'S BOYFRIEND, EMIL HUNT. It's more than just the mother and the boyfriend. We have to get to the bottom of it. FAMILY MEMBERS SAY BOTH ARE IN CUSTODY FOR TRINITY'S MURDER

AND BEING HELD ON A TWO MILLION DOLLAR BAIL. We need justice. We need to figure it out. It wasn't supposed to happen like this to no one. And everybody deserves an answer. I'M NOT SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN LIKE THIS TO NO ONE. AND EVERYBODY DESERVES AN ANSWER. MEANTIME, TRINITY'S FATHER POSTED AN EMOTIONAL MESSAGE ON FACEBOOK ABOUT BEING KEPT FROM SEEING TRINITY BY SOME FAMILY MEMBERS. AND NOW HE'S DISTRAUGHT HE'LL

NEVER SEE HIS LITTLE GIRL AGAIN. I HAVE A 9 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER NOW WHO WOULD NEVER EVER WALK THROUGH MY FRONT DOOR. THAT IS KTLAB. I'M A FATHER OF FIVE. I'M A FATHER OF FOUR.

I'M A FATHER OF FIVE. I'M A FATHER OF FIVE. I'M A FATHER OF FIVE. I'M A FATHER OF FIVE. I'M A FATHER OF FIVE. I'M A FATHER OF FIVE. I'M A FATHER OF FIVE. I'M A FATHER OF FIVE.

I'M A FATHER OF FIVE. I'M A FATHER OF FIVE. I'M A FATHER OF FIVE. I'M A FATHER OF FIVE. I'M A FATHER OF FIVE. I have a nine-year-old daughter now who would never, ever, ever walk through my front door. That is KTLA reporter Mary Beth McDade. And you're hearing Trinity Loves Dad. That's the big question right now. Why was this little girl with her sex offender mother and her boyfriend. And what did this girl endure before her death? Right now, we don't even know how the little girl died. There's no obvious signs of trauma on her body. Karen Smith, forensics expert, how will they determine that? That's a great question. You know, they have a manner of death, which is homicide, but the cause of death is

actually the mechanism that facilitated the death. Was it strangulation? Was it a smothering? You know, things like that is what they're going to start looking at if there's no obvious trauma to the body. And Nancy, going back to breaking this down like you do as a fabulous prosecutor, you know, this child was murdered. And then according to the maintenance worker who found her, her body was wrapped in a blanket. And then the child and the blanket were stuffed in this duffel bag, which was then hurled over the side of a highway into a dirt embankment. So there's a lot of forensic evidence that they can glean from that, from the child's clothing, from her body, from the duffel bag, from the blanket. They're going to have to do a crime scene search of the mother and boyfriend's

place of residence, the vehicle that was used to transport the body. They have a lot of work on their hands. And I'm really hoping that some of that forensic evidence will lead right back to the person or persons that committed this murder. To John Limley, CrimeOnline.com investigative reporter who I love to argue with. John Limley, I understand that police so far have not stated who is in custody, but we know who's in custody because of the family members, right? Right. Police are still not releasing that information. It is through family members, including family members posting on Facebook, that we know that it's the mother and the boyfriend that have been arrested. What do we know about the mom other than she's a sex offender?

Trinity's mom, Tequesta Graham, has filled her Facebook page with a lot of selfies of herself. There are two pictures of Trinity on her page as well. In one, she says that they were at the zoo. She said she lived in Long Beach. She was from Hollywood. Her cover photo shows her kissing the boyfriend, Emile Hunt. One photo showed her in a head covering, although her publicly visible posts are not religious in any nature. From the Facebook page, she seems to be a loving mom. We have no reason to believe otherwise.

You know, John Limley, you always say a loving mom. You always say that, John Limley. You know she has a record for prostituting a little girl. And you keep, you've said this more than once, a loving mom. She's not a loving mom. Her child. The way she worked on that image. Yeah, you know what's interesting?

Let me quit yelling at poor John Limley for a moment. Karen Starr, you know, I'm always posting pictures of the twins, and we're here and we're there. And, I mean, the pictures, do you know how many people are outraged that David is never in the pictures? And who do they think is taking the picture? I have pictures with David. Wait a second.

I have them. Yes, you do. So, Karen Stark, I mean, when you look at Facebook or, you know, your social media, a lot of times you don't see the whole picture because you've got this mom posting all these family perfect photos of her with her daughter who is now stuffed in a duffel bag on the side of a horse trail, but she was never reported missing. So what does that mean? What do people do with social media? They portray something that's not real. It's a story. It paints a picture of

something that we really have to question and never believe what you see on social media, Nancy, because that is the salient point. She was never reported missing. What kind of loving mother doesn't immediately panic if she doesn't know where her child is and inform the authorities? So you know immediately that something is very wrong if this girl is not reported missing. The mom, approximately 30 years old, we know is in a relationship with a guy named Emil Hunt. We also know he's being held at the L.A. County Jail on a $2 million bail. Well, let me tell you something, that ain't for shoplifting. I noticed online on his Facebook, the boyfriend, the live-in, Emil Hunt, says he is in a relationship, Dior Rex,

which is the name Tequesta Graham uses on social media. Hmm. We know that they're in a relationship because she posted it. Long story short, you find out so much from people by what they post on social media. Karen Smith, forensics expert. You know, as I was saying, you can learn so much from people's social media. For instance, with Trinity Love Jones' mother, Graham, her Facebook is full of almost nothing but selfies. It's only a couple of pictures of the little girl. Karen Smith, what does that mean to you forensically?

Well, forensically, it tells me a lot about the mom and her mindset, very self-absorbed. If you're not posting pictures of your kids and you're a mom, that is a red flag to me. That's a very distant way. Social media is a very distant way of putting yourself away from that child. Like, did you care about her? Did you care about her schoolwork? Did she get good grades? Did you post pictures of the drawings she made you yesterday? Things like that is what I see on social media from my friends with kids all the time. And when you have selfie after selfie after selfie and no pictures of the child, where is that child in your life? And that could be a little bit of circumstantial evidence for the police and prosecutors to go forward.

You know, I'm looking at what is on her, the mom's Facebook. One post that she has, quote, my mama didn't raise a fool, an effing psycho maybe, but not a fool. Then another, my kids save me from doing life in prison all the time. Okay, that's not exactly what you want your children to read Mommy Writing on Facebook. If you have information, please 323-890-5500. Repeat, please call 323-8-9-0-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5-5- similar to the murder of little Kelly. Nancy Grace, Crime Stories, signing off. Goodbye, friend. This is an iHeart Podcast.