The Texas district attorney charged with prosecuting two illegal immigrants for the murder of a 12-year-old Houston girl blamed a "broken system" that allowed the pair to allegedly commit the killing.
Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel, 21, and Franklin Jose Peña Ramos, 26, are charged with capital murder in the death of Jocelyn Nungaray, both of whom crossed illegally into the United States earlier this year.
"They should have never been released when they crossed over into El Paso, but we have a broken system, and Jocelyn’s death resulted. And it’s just hard when you know something could have been prevented like a child’s death," Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg told KPRC on Thursday.
ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT SUSPECT ACCUSED OF KILLING JOCELYN NUNGARAY WORE ICE ANKLE MONITOR
Both suspects, who are Venezuelan nationals, allegedly lured Nungaray under a bridge and sexually assaulted her for two hours before she was strangled to death and left in a creek. Nungaray's murder has amplified concerns over the vetting of migrants and the Biden administration's border policies.
Ogg said the immigration system has been broken for decades, something many Texans have been aware of for quite some time.
"We’ve seen it for a long time here. What’s different is we’re seeing people from other countries, it’s not just immigrants from Mexico," she said.
"We’re seeing immigrants from China, from the islands, from South America, like these individuals — that’s new. And I think it’s increasing the risk factor for regular people here," added Ogg. "So I’m hoping our government will work together in a bipartisan fashion to keep the public safe by making our borders safer."
Peña Ramos was arrested by Border Patrol agents after entering the country illegally and released from custody, with ICE telling Fox News in a statement Friday that he had "illegally entered the U.S. without inspection, parole or admission by a U.S. immigration officer on an unknown date and at an unknown location."
Nungaray's murder has prompted calls for stronger border enforcement and accountability.
"Our immigration system is broken, and if ever there was a case that reflected that, it's this one," Ogg said.
Fox News Digital reached out to Ogg's office.
Ogg, a Democrat, was unseated in her bid for a third term in March by former Harris County prosecutor Sean Teare, who won the Democratic primary for the DA's office by a landslide. Teare will face off against Dan Simmons, the lone Republican candidate in the race, in November.
Meanwhile, crime in the county has become a concern for elected local and state officials.
"Harris County has become a sanctuary for criminals, and the blame is not just on the Biden administration, but it's on the DA's office," Texas state Rep. Briscoe Cain, a Republican who lives in Harris County, told Fox News Digital.
Cain also cited local criminal court judges "who have let the world know that Harris County is a safe place for criminals, illegal or legal or otherwise."
Prosecutors make recommendations, but judges are ultimately responsible for who gets released on bond, and the sentences imposed, he noted.
Peña Ramos and Martinez-Rangel are each being held on $10 million bond. Nungaray was laid to rest Thursday.
