Case Details
- Photo URLs:
-
- Missing Since:
- Missing Since 10/22/2013
- Missing From:
- Missing From Deltona, Florida
- Classification:
- Classification Endangered Missing
- Gender:
- Female
- Race:
- Race Hispanic
- Date of Birth:
- Date of Birth 10/08/2004 (20)
- Age:
- Age 9 years old
- Height and Weight:
- Height and Weight 3’0, 50 pounds
- Clothing/Jewelry Description:
- Distinguishing Characteristics:
- Distinguishing Characteristics Hispanic female. Black hair, black eyes.
- Details of Disappearance:
- In October 2013, Thalia, her brother Michael, and their mother, Yessenia, vanished from their Deltona, Florida home. Their stepfather, Luis Toledo, was a violent man with a criminal history, including time in prison for robbery and kidnapping. He was also a high-ranking member of the Latin Kings gang.
Yessenia and Toledo had a troubled marriage; Yessenia was having an affair. On the day of the disappearance, Toledo argued with Yessenia at work, slapping her. Later, he threatened her family. That evening, Yessenia initially planned to stay at her mother’s house with the children, but changed her mind and took them home. This was the last time anyone saw them.
The next morning, when Yessenia didn’t call her mother, the police were notified. Their home was empty, and Yessenia’s car was found at a nearby store.
Police quickly suspected Toledo. They found Thalia’s blood in the house and on items Toledo had thrown away. Toledo confessed to killing Yessenia but blamed a neighbor, Tyshawn Jackson, for the children’s deaths. However, police didn’t believe Jackson’s involvement. Toledo also made cryptic comments about sending boxes to Mexico in a letter from jail.
In 2017, Toledo was convicted of murdering Yessenia and the children. He was sentenced to life in prison. Despite extensive searches, the bodies of Yessenia, Thalia, and Michael have never been found.
- Agency:
- Volusia County Sheriff’s Office 888-277-8477
- Source Links:
This person was missing Missing Since 10/22/2013