Authorities arrested a California woman Tuesday who is suspected of killing her 7-year-old child with special needs, police said.
Samantha Moreno Rodriguez, 35, was taken into custody after a task force led by FBI’s Denver field office issued a nationwide manhunt. She will be booked into a local jail before being extradited to Las Vegas, department officials announced.
The Crime
Rodriguez is suspected of killing Liam Husted, 7, whose body was discovered by hikers along the Mountain Springs Trailhead.
The suspect was last seen leaving home with her son on May 24 on their 2007 Dodge Caliber packed full of belongings. She was last seen checking into a Denver hotel on May 31.
The boy’s father, who was not considered a suspect in the case, later contacted authorities on June 1 to report his son missing.
“The father did not feel that his son was in harm’s way,” Lt. Ray Spencer said at a press conference. “Not trying to get the mother into trouble, he did not want to file any type of charges or anything.”
