A Nevada woman is expected to plead guilty to killing her 7-year-old son in 2021 and leaving his body on a trail.
Hikers discovered Liam Husted’s body near the Mountain Springs Trailhead on May 28, 2021. On Thursday, Samantha Moreno-Rodriguez, 36, entered a guilty plea agreement in Las Vegas in connection with her son’s slaying, according to KVVU.
Las Vegas police released composite sketches of Husted, who was unidentified for two weeks. Moreno-Rodriguez’s arrest in Denver, Colorado, came after police publicized composite images in hopes of receiving leads.
About a week after Husted’s body was found, a friend contacted authorities in San Jose, California, and told them that the child in the sketch may be Husted. California police then provided Las Vegas authorities with a pillow from Husted’s bedroom. DNA testing confirmed the unidentified child in Nevada was Husted. KVUU reported.
According to the news outlet, Husted’s father also contacted police in San Jose about the missing mother and son on June 1. He claimed he last heard from the pair on May 24, and he had gone to their home to find all their stuff gone. At some point, Moreno-Rodriguez allegedly told Husted’s father that they were leaving to find a home. Las Vegas police said the father did not report a missing person report at the time as nothing in Moreno-Rodriguez’s message seemed suspicious.
Husted and Moreno-Rodriguez were reportedly spotted at a Las Vegas hotel on May 27, 2021. Days later, on May 31, she checked into a Denver hotel alone.
The two leads, along with DNA evidence confirming the boy’s identity, led to the mother’s arrest on June 8.
Moreno-Rodriguez, who initially pleaded not guilty to Husted’s murder, is due in court on Thursday.
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[Featured image: Liam Husted and Samantha Morena-Rodriguez/Los Vegas Metropolitan Police Department]
