A former substitute teacher with the Marfa Independent School District now faces federal prison after pleading guilty to child pornography charges.
Sonya Conchita Murillo, 32, pleaded guilty last week to one count of production of child pornography in charges stemming from an investigation conducted by the FBI, Homeland Security Investigations, the Texas Department of Public Safety, and the Marfa Police Department, according to a news release from the U.S. District Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Texas.
A sentencing date for Murillo has not been set, but she could be given up to 30 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.
Murillo was arrested on June 7, 2023, after child sexual abuse materials were found in the possession of her former boyfriend, 36-year-old Patricio Javier Serrano. Serrano, who previously worked as a youth softball coach in Marfa, pleaded guilty to charges stemming from this discovery of child porn featuring prepubescent boys last October. His sentencing date is set for February 27.
Several videos showed Murillo “in full and plain view” sexually abusing a minor, investigators reported, according to The Big Bend Sentinel.
Although Murillo was never issued a teaching certificate in Texas, at the time of her arrest, she worked as an on-call substitute for Marfa ISD, which has a student body of under 300, according to the Texas Scorecard. The district has not commented on Murillo’s arrest.
An alarming number of criminal cases involving child sex abuse and child pornography have come to light in Texas this past year, many involving educators, coaches, and other school staff, as reported in The Dallas Express. Three Dallas ISD employees were arrested on allegations of crimes committed against students in 2023 alone.
More broadly, criminal cases involving child sex abuse and online solicitation of sex with minors have emerged in force, with a retired hospital chaplain and a city council candidate being investigated in North Texas this past year.
In Dallas, a total of 35 sex crimes have already been logged in 2024 as of January 29, according to the City of Dallas crime analytics dashboard. The vast majority of victims were black or Hispanic and had a median age of 16.
An officer shortage has dampened the Dallas Police Department’s efforts to curb crime, with only 3,000 officers in its ranks despite a City report calling for 4,000. City officials have budgeted DPD only $654 million this fiscal year, which is considerably less than the amounts spent by leaders in other high-crime municipalities, including New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago.
