HOUSTON – The woman authorities believe is responsible for a 5-year-old boy’s death appeared in court Monday.
After the hearing, the prosecutor told KPRC 2 she’s confident they’ll bring justice to little Samuel Olson.
Theresa Balboa stood before a judge as the prosecutor laid out the capital murder charge against her. She allegedly hit the child with a blunt object, killing him on or about May 12.
Investigators said Balboa called her roommate Benjamin Rivera saying she had killed Samuel. They left the boy’s body in their Webster apartment for two days, court documents said.
During that time, Balboa and Rivera were caught on Walmart surveillance video buying duct tape and a plastic container. Court documents say they kept Samuel’s body in a storage unit before Balboa took it to a Jasper hotel. That’s where authorities found the body and Balboa.
Balboa was initially charged with tampering with evidence but it was upgraded last week.
“I was reviewing the evidence in terms of the laboratory evidence and the cell phones that we received and making sure that we could in fact corroborate the statements of Benjamin Rivera in regards to who was responsible for the death of Samuel Olson, and after reviewing that I’m confident that I can meet my burden in this case and get justice for little Samuel,” Prosecutor Andrea Beall said.
Rivera and Dylan Walker have both been charged with tampering with evidence. Court documents say Walker drove Balboa to Jasper and rented the motel room where Samuel’s body was found.
Balboa doesn’t have an attorney in the capital murder case, so a bond hasn’t been set.
Next, prosecutors will take the case to a grand jury and District Attorney Kim Ogg will decide if they’ll pursue the death penalty.