Pueblo police arrest two suspects after children's bodies found in storage unit, suitcase
Editor's note: This story was updated on Feb. 17 to reflect that both suspects have now been arrested.
Pueblo police have arrested two suspects on allegations of first-degree murder after a child’s body was found encased in concrete in a storage container in January, and a second child’s body was later found in a suitcase in the trunk of a vehicle discarded at a local scrapyard.
Police arrested Corena Rose Minjarez, 36, and Jesus Dominguez, 35, in connection with the case.
The Pueblo Police Department announced in January it had launched a homicide investigation after the remains of a child, officially identified Friday as Yesenia Dominguez, who was approximately 3 years old when she was last seen in the summer of 2018, were found by police.
Officers had been called to the 600 block of West Sixth Street on a report that someone had found a metal container in a storage unit that was filled with hardened concrete. Police searched the container and located a child's remains. They then launched a homicide investigation, in which Dominguez and Minjarez were questioned as persons of interest.
Dominguez was arrested for an outstanding warrant, police said, and during subsequent interviews with police, it was mentioned that the children may be somewhere in Phoenix, Arizona, according to a Friday evening Pueblo PD news release.
Police say they followed up on that potential lead with no success.
Through their investigation, detectives located a vehicle allegedly belonging to Minjarez at a local scrapyard. On Feb. 6, police executed a search warrant on that vehicle and found a suitcase in the trunk, inside of which were the remains of a young male child, officially identified Friday as Jesus Dominguez Jr., who was approximately 5 years old when last seen in 2018.
On Feb. 15, police received DNA confirmation that the remains found in the metal container belonged to Yesenia Dominguez and the remains found in the suitcase belonged to Jesus Dominguez Jr.
Police say their investigation revealed that no missing person’s reports were ever filed for Yesenia Dominguez or Jesus Dominguez Jr. Police were not made aware of the missing children until Jan. 20, 2024.
The children's deaths mark the 5th and 6th homicides recorded in the city of Pueblo in 2024.
On Feb. 15, police obtained arrest warrants for Minjarez and Dominguez alleging two counts of first-degree murder and two counts of abuse of a corpse. Dominguez was additionally charged with theft of government benefits.
Pueblo police spokesperson Sgt. Frank Ortega declined to comment Friday on whether the two deceased children are the biological offspring of Minjarez and Dominguez.
Minjarez was arrested shortly after the arrest warrant was issued and is being held at the Pueblo County Detention Center on a $2 million cash-only bond. Police had not located Dominguez prior to Friday's news release but announced on Saturday that he'd been arrested.
Bond information for Dominguez was not available Saturday afternoon prior to the Chieftain's press deadline.
All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in court. Arrests and charges are merely accusations by law enforcement until, and unless, a suspect is convicted of a crime.
Chieftain Editor Zach Hillstrom can be reached at zhillstrom@gannett.com or on X, formerly Twitter, at @ZachHillstrom. Support local news, subscribe to the Pueblo Chieftain at subscribe.chieftain.com.
This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Pueblo police arrest two suspects in alleged murders of two children
