HOUSTON – The nephew of Houston-area siblings who went missing earlier this year has been charged in connection with their deaths after he confessed to killing them, police said.
Ramon Escobar, 47, was charged with capital murder in the deaths of Rogelio Escobar, 65, and Dina Escobar, 61, who went missing in late August within days of each other. Rogelio Escobar and Dina Escobar were brother and sister.
Dina Escobar's van was found in Galveston days after the siblings were reported missing.
Ramon Escobar was arrested in California in September in connection with a series of attacks there that left two homeless people dead and several others injured.
Houston police said they interviewed Ramon Escobar a few days after his uncle and aunt were reported missing, but they did not have any direct evidence of his involvement in their disappearances. Days later, Ramon Escobar fled to Southern California, police said.
Police said that after his arrest in California, they again interviewed him about the siblings’ disappearance, and he denied any involvement. He later confessed to killing them, police said.
According to court documents, Ramon Escobar told a jailer he had been "planning to kill someone for a while because of all the disrespect he had received from people.”
Ramon Escobar initially planned to kill Dina Escobar and her son, court documents allege, but after he couldn't find Escobar's son, he turned to his uncle, Rogelio Escobar.
Ramon Escobar lived with his uncle and other relatives at Rogelio Escobar's home on the 3700 block of Prudence Drive in southwest Houston.
On the night of Aug. 26, Ramon Escobar allegedly "waited until the rest of the house had gone to bed and Rogelio was in his bedroom and then he walked in asked him for a cigarette,” according to police documents.
"While Rogelio was distracted, he hit him over the head a few times with an old police baton that he found.”
Court documents allege Ramon Escobar wrapped his uncle's body in a cardboard box, leaving it in a dumpster at a warehouse on Skyline Drive, near Fountain View, in southwest Houston.
Two days later, on Aug. 28, Dina Escobar showed up at her brother’s house to look for him. Ramon Escobar was there, too, police said, watching his aunt search the house.
Court documents allege Ramon Escobar then decided he would kill Dina EScobar and “walked outside and broke into her van ... (covering) himself up with clothing and other items" as he hid, waiting for her to get into the vehicle.
Ramon Escobar allegedly dumped Dina Escobar's body in a dumpster near Broadway and the South Loop.
Police believe both bodies are in a landfill, unlikely to be recovered.
Investigators said they are still working on locating and recovering the bodies of Rogelio and Dina Escobar.