The 24-year-old cousin of Kayla Gomez, who went missing during a church prayer service, has been charged with murder after her body was discovered in a well at the weekend.
An amber alert was raised last week after Gomez disappeared from a service at Bullard First Assembly Church, East Texas, that was also being attended by her parents. At the time the alert went out, authorities had feared she was snatched by a stranger and warned she was in "grave danger".
Her disappearance shocked the small community of Bullard, with hundreds joining prayer vigils and assisting in the search for her.
Now, according to KETK, Gustavo Zavala-Garcia, a Mexican national and cousin to Kayla by marriage, has been taken into custody at Smith County Jail after her body was found in the grounds of a home on FM 2493, just a few miles away from the church where she was last seen.
Smith County Sheriff Larry Smith told the news network: "A family member resides at the residence that we conducted the search where the body was recovered.
"He voluntarily accompanied law enforcement officers to be interviewed. Upon the completion of the interview, a federal immigration detainer was issued for his detention.
"He is now in the Smith County jail, without any possibility of making bond at this time."
CBS19 reports that in the arrest affidavit, a church member said they saw Kayla leave the church on the night of her disappearance with Zavala-Garcia and his 3-year-old daughter.
According to KLTV, U.S. Department of Immigration and Customs Enforcement understands Zavala-Garcia to be in the country illegally. An autopsy is being carried out at the Southwestern Institute of Forensic Sciences in Dallas to establish the cause of death.
