A 32-year-old Texas mother of five died after being stabbed several times during a daytime confrontation, and three young women now sit in jail facing murder charges in a case that has rattled the border city of Del Rio.
Authorities identified the victim as Caroline Peña, known to those close to her as "Caro." She was attacked on Thursday, June 25, and was pronounced dead that night, the Del Rio Police Department said in a statement shared on social media.
Charged in her killing are Kitty Mia Diaz, 21; Amaya "Cookie" Diaz, 19; and Kyandra Renee Faz, 21. According to coverage from Fox News, the two Diaz women are sisters and Faz was described as their friend.
The sequence began shortly after 2 p.m., when officers were sent to Val Verde Regional Medical Center after a woman turned up there with stab wounds. Investigators traced the assault to the 800 block of East 10th Street. The injuries were serious enough that Peña was flown to a hospital in the San Antonio area for emergency care, where she later died. Police were informed of her death around 9 p.m.
A childhood friend, Zelina Ochoa, told KENS 5 that the violence unfolded in plain view, near a Sonic at a heavily traveled corner rather than somewhere hidden away. She remembered Peña as someone devoted to her children, saying she really loved being a mom.
Detectives moved quickly. Within roughly two hours of the hospital call, they had pulled surveillance footage, collected physical evidence and spoken with witnesses, work that pointed them toward the three suspects. The two sisters were taken into custody around 4 p.m. without resistance, and Faz was arrested soon afterward. All three were booked at the police department.
Fox News, citing the wound pattern, reported that Peña had been stabbed twice in the back and once in the abdomen. The police statement itself described only "multiple" wounds without specifying a count.
The women were initially detained and, after Peña's death was confirmed, formally charged with murder. They were moved to the GEO Correctional Facility. Police said the three remain held pending magistration; one outlet characterized their status as being jailed without bond, a difference in wording that the department has not clarified.
What set off the encounter is still unknown. Police have declined to offer a motive and have not said whether anyone else may have taken part. They cautioned that further charges could follow as the inquiry continues.
For those who knew Peña, the legal process offers little comfort. Friends described a generous woman who turned up for the people around her, and they noted that her death leaves behind five children, the eldest a teenage son, along with a twin sister. Ochoa said that whatever happens in court, the children are the ones left to carry the loss.
The investigation is ongoing, and the three women are presumed innocent unless and until convicted.
