ALEXIA LOPEZ - 2 yo (2008)/ Suspect: Berny Figueroa - Brenham TX

It's been two years since a
Brenham toddler died allegedly at the hands of her baby sitter.
A candlelight vigil will be held
Saturday in memory of 2-year-old Alexia Lopez, who died in 2008.
Held by the Washington County
Victim's Task Force and the Lopez family, the vigil is scheduled for
10:30 a.m. at St. Peter's Episcopal Church Fellowship Hall in Brenham on
Airline Drive.
Crews from America's Most Wanted,
which aired Alexia's story in September, will be there and re-air her
story March 20th.
The suspect, Berny Figueroa, is
still at large, and family and police are doing all they can to make
sure justice is served.
"It haunts me every day," Sandra
Lopez recalled. "These were the rosaries we gave out to everyone at her
service."
It happened two years ago, but to
Sandra Lopez, it feels like it was yesterday.
"The last words she told my
husband were "Daddy, I want my bottle." Those are words that he can't
forget and he just regrets not being here because he didn't get to see
her," Lopez said as she wiped away tears.
On March 11, 2008, Lopez picked up
her 2-year-old daughter from the baby sitter's house.
Alexia was having trouble
breathing and had been throwing up.
Initially, they thought it was an
asthma attack, until they got to the hospital.
"I remember the doctor's exact
words," Lopez remembered. "They told me someone hurt your daughter.
Alexia just passed away. We tried to resuscitate her, but we couldn't."
Alexia suffered blunt force trauma
which caused her intestines to separate, Brenham police said.
"You can imagine for yourself what
it would take to separate your large and small intestines -- that type
of blow," Brenham Assistant Police Chief Jay Petrash said. "How it
occurred, we can only theorize."
After Alexia's parents were
cleared of any wrongdoing, police turned their attention to the baby
sitter, Berny Figueroa.
Police questioned Figueroa
extensively. But before a warrant was issued for her arrest, the woman
disappeared. Figueroa reportedly left a note behind saying the pressure
was just too much for her.
"We believe she's in Mexico or in
El Salvador," Petrash said.
The Brenham Department is working
with federal authorities to find her.
"When you have a dead child, it is
a priority and it will always be a priority. We're going to hunt this
woman to the ends of the earth," Petrash promised.
For Sandra Lopez, that day
couldn't come soon enough. Figueroa's capture would mean closure for the
family.
"There's always something missing,
there are still no answers," Lopez said. "I want her here and I want
her tried. I want her to pay for what she did."
Figueroa, 30, is wanted for
capital murder. She is 5'5" and weighs 110 pounds.
If you have any information about
her whereabouts, you're asked to call Brenham Police at 979-337-7272.

Local murder case to re-air on ‘AMW’

By ARTHUR HAHN/Managing Editor
Published:
Wednesday, December 29, 2010 2:19 PM CST
With few new clues to work with, Alexia Lopez’s mother and the Brenham Police Department are hopeful a “re-airing” by America’s Most Wanted (AMW) segment on the child’s death will produce new tips.

AMW on Saturday will again show the program featuring the case of Alexia Lopez, who died here in March 2008 from severe abdominal injuries which authorities said were caused by vicious blows. Alexia was 21/2 when she died in the hospital here.

Her caregiver, Berny Mayel Figueroa, was indicted on a capital murder charge but fled before she could be arrested. Authorities have been searching for her for almost three years.

The AMW segment originally aired in September 2009, and authorities and Alexia’s family were hopeful it would result in information leading to Figueroa’s arrest.

That hasn’t happened.

“I wish there was,” said Brenham Police Detective Lloyd Powell when he was asked if there are any new leads in the case. “We’ve been vigorously investigating it.”

Powell said he is hopeful showing the segment again will yield some new information on Figueroa’s location.

“We’ve got our fingers crossed,” he said.

Authorities in June were given a picture believed to be Figueroa in some unknown location and again asked for the public’s help in identifying where it could have been taken.

That too, said Powell, was a dead end.

Authorities found out where it was taken, then were able to determine when it was taken.

“It was at the Los Angeles Zoo,” said Powell. “But it was taken several years before the crime happened.”

Zoo officials were able to determine when the photo was taken by identifying the display and then studying the “background and how it’s painted,” Powell said.

“Subtle things, but they were able to tell us how long ago it was,” he said.

Alexia’s mother Sandra said she is hopeful re-airing the AMW segment will generate more tips. It will be shown Saturday at 8 p.m. on Fox.

“What a better way to start off the year than by remembering Alexia’s memory,” she said. “I know most of you will be with your loved ones welcoming the new year, but I would like everyone to take a few minutes to sit down and watch the episode.

“I hope 2011 will bring the closure my family and I have been waiting for.”

http://www.brenhambanner.com/articles/2010/12/29/news/news02.txt

Park Bench Donated in Memory of Slain Toddler

Posted: Fri 12:37 PM, Jul 15, 2011
By: Crystal Galny

The Brenham community will remember a toddler this weekend who died in 2008, allegedly at the hands of her baby sitter.

A bench will be placed at Fireman's Park in honor of Alexia Lopez's birthday.

It will be installed Saturday at 10:00 a.m. at 901 North Park Street in Brenham.

The bench was donated by Kenneth and Karla Schulz, with the stone and steel donated by David and Melissa Bennett with Bennett Construction. It will be installed at the new play area of Fireman's Park.

Alexia would have been six years old.

She died when she was just two years old from blunt force trauma.

Her suspected killer, Berny Figueroa, is still at large.

Her story has been featured on America's Most Wanted.

http://www.kbtx.com/home/headlines/Park_Bench_Donated_in_Memory_of_Slain_Toddler_125645083.html