HOUSTON – A man is standing trial for capital murder in the death of a 6-year-old Houston boy.
In 1992, Angelo Garcia Jr. was kidnapped, then stabbed to death after a home invasion, during which his mother was raped and his stepfather pistol whipped.
"While he sexually assaulted her, baby Angelo laid crying for his mommy on the floor," said Natalie Tise, assistant Harris County district attorney.
Two men then ransacked the apartment for money and drugs and fled with Angelo. Obel Cruz Garcia, known as Chico, was one of those men and was sentenced to death in July after being convicted of capital murder.
Prosecutors say Aviles Barroso is the second attacker and actually stabbed Angelo to death.
On Wednesday, Diana Garcia, mother of the 6-year-old, testified that Aviles-Barroso was in fact one of the masked men, saying she recognizes him by his voice and dialect.
"There is a guess chance rather than a reasonable chance after 20 years that she would recognize anybody," said Charles Brown, the defense attorney.
The defense is casting doubt on her credibility, saying she lied to police after the crime occurred about being a cocaine dealer.
"The reason that it happened was that his mother and stepfather were big-time drug dealers," said Brown.
As part of a plea deal, Rudy Santana, who was the driver the night of the crime, will also testify that Barroso was the one who stabbed Angelo that night.
"He heard Chico say to this defendant, 'You know what to do,' and then he heard the child scream, they killed him immediately that night," said Tise.