Suspects alleged to have stabbed a young Texas mother of five to death were seen smiling and “goofing off” as officers took them into custody.
(Video Credit: KENS 5)
Thursday in the Texas border town of Del Rio, tragedy struck as five children under the age of 17 lost their mother to murder. However, there was no sense of remorse demonstrated by at least two of the three alleged suspects as the sisters were seen smiling and giggling as officers took them into custody hours before the victim succumbed to her wounds.
With the investigation ongoing, the Del Rio Police Department released a statement Friday along with the mugshots identifying three suspects charged for allegedly murdering 32-year-old Caroline “Caro” Peña. They were said to be sisters Kitty Mia Diaz, 21 and Amaya Cookie Diaz, 19, along with a third suspect, 21-year-old Kyandra Renee Faz.”
“On June 25, 2026, at approximately 2:10 p.m., officers with the Del Rio Police Department responded to the Val Verde Regional Medical Center after receiving a report of a female suffering from multiple stab wounds,” detailed the police. “Upon arrival, officers determined the assault had occurred in the 800 block of East 10th Street.”
Friend Christina Salinas detailed to KENS 5 that Peña was stabbed at least three times, once on her side and twice in the back — said to have punctured her lungs. The victim was transported from Del Rio to San Antonio due to the extent of her injuries, which ultimately proved fatal around 9:00 p.m. Thursday.
This is the mom of five who was murdered. https://t.co/kTIGHiugJ2 pic.twitter.com/8aREeKBnkk
— Louis Montoya (@montoyalouis1) June 29, 2026
Hours earlier, around 4:00 p.m., video later published by the YouTube account Good Citizen captured the arrests of the Diaz sisters, where the younger of the two could be heard shouting “Stop recording!” as she smiled and giggled for the camera.
“I didn’t know what was going on, but I knew it must be serious,” independent journalist Michael Elizondo told the New York Post of his decision to record the arrest. “I saw the first girl going into the car, and I thought, ‘Whatever.’ … But the second one caught my eye.”
“That girl was in a happy mood … She was all smiling, goofing off like nothing happened,” he explained. Elizondo went on to describe how, after she was put in the back of the police vehicle, “All of the sudden I see the window go down, and the girl was sticking out her face, sticking out her tongue and goofing off.”
“This wasn’t something that happened in a back alley; this happened at the corner near Sonic on one of our busiest roads in broad daylight,” friend Zelina Ochoa told KENS 5. Additional video that captured the fatal attack was said to have circulated online before being taken down.
As for the suspects, they were transported to GEO Correctional Facility, charged with murder and were said to be awaiting court hearings. A suspected motive had not been named by police.
The entire arrest video can be seen below:
(Video Credit: Good Citizen)
Native of Brooklyn, NY, Kevin Haggerty is a graduate of Hunter College where he studied Cultural Anthropology and Geography. An avid reader and truth seeker, he currently resides in Texas with his wife and their dog and, when he isn't researching current events and their impacts, you'll find him spending time with friends and family or working on his next novel.
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