Mother of 9-year-old found dead in a duffel bag extradited from Texas

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Taquesta Graham, the mother of Trinity Love Jones, the 9-year-old girl whose body was found partially stuffed inside a duffel bag near an equestrian trail in Hacienda Heights, was recently extradited to Los Angeles from Texas.

READ MORE: Missing Black girl found in duffel bag identified by police; death ruled homicide

Graham, 28, was booked by investigators early Thursday morning at the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Norwalk Station and is being held without bail, according to CBS Los Angeles. Despite the ongoing investigation surrounding her daughter’s death in California, the mother of the late Jones and her boyfriend, Emiel Lamar Hunt, made their way to Texas last week.

Around 6 am on the morning on March 8, Hunt and Graham were stopped in Hunt’s SUV at a border patrol checkpoint in Hudspeth County, Texas. Graham was taken in for an unrelated parole violation, where she was subsequently interviewed about her daughter’s death. At the time, Hunt was not taken into custody, LASD officials reported in a statement.

Following Graham’s detainment and questioning, a warrant was later issued for Hunt in connection to Jones’ death. Hunt was later arrested in a lot near San Diego International Airport, where he was found sleeping in his black Nissan Armada SUV. He was taken in early Saturday, March 9, as a person of interest in connection to Jones’ death. He has since been charged with the child’s murder.

READ MORE: Mom’s boyfriend charged in gruesome slaying of 9-year-old Black girl found in duffel bag

This is not Hunt’s first run-in with the law, as he was previously convicted in 2005 for a heinous child abuse charge in San Diego. He is currently being held in jail on a $2 million dollar bond.

Earlier in the month, the then-unidentified body of Jones was discovered by county workers who were cleaning the popular park area. Her body was found partially stuffed in a duffel bag near a hiking trail on March 5, and her death was immediately ruled a homicide.

At the time of the young girl’s death, it was said she and her family were homeless. It is believed that they had been living between motels and their vehicle. Hunt, Graham and daughter Trinity moved from a family member’s home in Long Beach in 2018 and are said to have had limited contact with their family in the past year, according to the sheriff’s department.

The criminal case against Jones’ mother, Taquesta Graham, is being prepared for presentation to the Los Angeles County District Attorney’s Office, according to CBS.