CRIME

Death Penalty Sought for Jorge, Carmen Barahona

Charged with using chemicals to murder daughter.

Florida officials announced Monday they are seeking the death penalty for Jorge and Carmen Barahona, the parents accused of murdering their 10-year-old daughter and severely injuring her twin brother. The Barahonas appeared in court Monday, where they faced first-degree murder charges, eight counts of aggravated child abuse, and eight counts of child neglect; Jorge was charged with an additional count of mutilation or abuse of a dead body. A road ranger found Barahona’s abandoned pest-control truck by the side of the road on February 14, and firefighters found Jorge Barahona passed out nearby and Nubia’s twin brother inside the truck suffering from third-degree burns from unknown chemicals. Under further inspection, environmental inspectors found Nubia’s decomposing body stuffed into a trash bag in the car. The case triggered a review of the state’s child-welfare system, as social workers had visited the family to investigate child-abuse claims only four days before Nubia’s death.