Human skeletal remains that were found in Liberty County have been identified as those of Esmeralda Paragas-Nunez, a mother of five children who's been missing since Aug. 3, 2016, authorities said.
Officials said the skeletal remains were discovered by a property owner on Aug. 28, 2016. After a two-day search, police said they were able to recover 85 percent of the skeletal remains.
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The remains were tested by the Jefferson County Medical Examiner's Office and the skeletal remains' DNA were recently confirmed by the Liberty County Sheriff's Office as Paragas-Numez's.
Houston police were part of the investigation.
READ: Mother of 5 disappears, police say
What happened to Esmeralda Paradas-Nunez the day she disappeared?
A family friend, Flavio Salinas, told Channel 2 News that Esmeralda worked at the Snow Flake Donut & Deli shop at I-45 at Gulf Bank Road.
Salinas said on Aug. 3, 2016, Paragas-Nunez was supposed to meet a woman she had recently met through work at a park near Veterans Memorial Drive. The woman said she never showed up.
“As unfortunate as it sounds, I think she was kidnapped and she's definitely in danger,” Salinas said.
The cause of death is unknown. No arrests have been made.
A cash reward is being offered to anyone who can provide information about a person or persons responsible for Paragas-Nunez's death.
Anyone with information is asked to call the Liberty County Sheriff's Office at 936-336-4500, the Houston Police Department Missing Person Division at 832-394-1840 or the Multi-County Crime Stoppers at 1-800-392-7867.