TX - Zi'Ariel Robinson Oliver, 9, A'Miyah Hughes, 8, and Te'Mari Robinson Oliver, 5, accidental drowning now homicide by strangulation, Cass Co., 2022

[drama_farmer]

Officials ID siblings whose bodies were recovered from East Texas pond

This is a developing story, but CBS19 will update this article as more information becomes available.

www.cbs19.tv

The children, identified by the Texarkana Gazette as 5-year-old Temari Oliver, 8-year-old Amiyah Hughes, and 9-year-old Zi'Ariel Oliver, were siblings, and were found around 2 a.m. Saturday, in a private pond off State Highway 7, near Atlanta.

 

[cocomod]

I read this article yesterday, and wondered why there wasn’t a thread. So very sad!

 

[cvaldez1975]

how did they end up there? were they murdered?

 

[BigTexas]

Oh my gosh! I am from Texarkana and I actually work for the Gazette, albeit in sports. I will try to see if I can become an insider IF I can get the information on this tragic story.

 

[azure]

how did they end up there? were they murdered?

Multiple drownings happen when a person who can't swim is in distress in a body of water and others who cannot swim enter the water in an attempt to save the first person.

 

[cocomod]

Oh my gosh! I am from Texarkana and I actually work for the Gazette, albeit in sports. I will try to see if I can become an insider IF I can get the information on this tragic story.

That would be great! I would love to know what happened here. As I understand it, they were with a babysitter...

 

[cvaldez1975]

Multiple drownings happen when a person who can't swim is in distress in a body of water and others who cannot swim enter the water in an attempt to save the first person.

yes, i am aware. but the original story at the link was just vague.

 

[SuziQ]

Three Texas sisters who were all found dead in pond were strangled

It was originally believed Zi'Ariel Robinson Oliver, 9, A'Miyah Hughes, 8, and Te'Mari Robinson Oliver, 5, had drowned after a dive team pulled their bodies from a private pond on a neighboring property.

mol.im

Snipped:
Three Texas sisters who were thought to have drowned in their neighbor's pond were actually strangled before they were dumped, an autopsy has found.

It was originally believed Zi'Ariel Robinson Oliver, 9, A'Miyah Hughes, 8, and Te'Mari Robinson Oliver, 5, drowned after a dive team pulled their bodies from the pond on a neighboring property on July 22, 2022.

But Cass County District Attorney Courtney Shelton said in a statement Thursday the girls died by strangulation and suffered lacerations to their faces.

 

[vls12345]

3 girls’ deaths now considered to be homicides

Autopsies show evidence that the children were strangled

www.ksla.com

 

[imstilla.grandma]

On Thursday, Cass County District Attorney Courtney Shelton revealed that authorities are treating the deaths as homicides and urged the public to come forward with any information about what happened.

As CrimeOnline previously reported, the victims have been identified as sisters 9-year-old Zi’Ariel Robinson-Oliver, 8-year-old A’Miyah Hughes, and 5-year-old Te’Mari Robinson-Oliver.

Their cousin, Paris Propps, was responsible for watching them while their mother was at work on July 29, 2022. But around 9 p.m. that evening, Propps reported the girls missing. Hours later, authorities recovered the girls’ bodies from a neighbor’s pond.

Autopsies revealed evidence of strangulation and lacerations to the girls’ faces, according to KSLA-TV. Police have conducted interviews and are testing DNA evidence, but no details were released about whether investigators have identified any suspects or a potential motive.

THREE Texas Sisters Found in Neighbor’s Pond Were All Strangled Dead, Investigators Say

Three young Texas girls who initially appeared to have drowned were actually strangled to death, investigators now believe, yet no one has been arrested in the eight-month-old case, CBS 19 reports. On Thursday, Cass County District Attorney Courtney Shelton revealed that authorities are treating...

www.crimeonline.com

The girls also had lacerations on their faces, authorities said.

East Texas officials looking for new information in connection to 2022 homicides of 3 children

LINDEN, Texas (KETK) – East Texas officials are looking for new information in connection to the homicides of three children, whose bodies were found in a pond in 2022. The bodies of 9-year-o…

www.ketk.com

​

 

[tlcya]

earlier story about the girls being recoverd from pond. It stinks. I don't know why it was initially called drownings

Bodies of 3 girls recovered from Cass County pond

 

[PromotedPawn]

I'm ready to find out who did this!

 

[Goecke]

According to the DailyMail article, "Three young sisters were found dead after vanishing from their Texas home while by babysat by a family friend..."

Sure hope LE talks to this friend...

 

[georgiajean]

More information here: Mom Speaks Out After 3 Daughters Are Strangled, Dumped in Pond
Oliver’s 31-year-old cousin was babysitting the kids and their three siblings, who were unharmed, at the time while Oliver was at work.

Oliver, 28, got a call from the cousin, who was using a neighbor’s phone, at around 9 p.m. on July 29, she told The Daily Beast. He told her simply “that my kids were missing,” Oliver recalled.

“He didn’t say how many, he just said ‘missing,’” Oliver said on Sunday. “So as I’m driving home, I’m calling 911—something that he should have done from the jump, and then call me.”

So you have a 31 year old male cousin watching six young kids, they go missing, he calls the mom who calls 911 on her way home. Single mom, 28, with six kids, working as a CNA. Not sure what the daylight is like the end of July at 9 pm, how normal it would have been for the kids to be out playing (the other three seem to be younger, going off of social media, the oldest born in 2017?). Has LE looked for people in neighborhood with prior convictions? How long had the girls been gone? How close was the cousin paying attention? Like had it been hours since he last saw them, or 30 minutes? Just heartbreaking, these kids, this mom.

 

[georgiajean]

From same article: Mom Speaks Out After 3 Daughters Are Strangled, Dumped in Pond

Now, Oliver’s cousin, who did not answer phone calls or respond to email requests for comment, is being prevented from speaking to investigators by his mother—Oliver’s aunt—according to Oliver.

“Why won’t [she] let him talk to the police, or take him down to the police?” Oliver said. “...All I want is justice for my babies.”

The cousin, for his part, has a relatively minor criminal history that includes misdemeanor weapons, narcotics, and criminal mischief arrests.

 

[tlcya]

I'm sorry but in what universe is Paris Propps, aged 31, being "prevented" from talking by his mother? It's not up to his mother to "let" him do anything. I don't get the blame or anger toward the cousin's mother. Feels to me like the anger should be directed to the person who she entrusted her children to while at work? What am I missing here?

Mr. Propps has some 'splaining to do and if LE want to talk to him they dang well will do so, mommy or no.

 

[georgiajean]

I'm sorry but in what universe is Paris Propps, aged 31, being "prevented" from talking by his mother? It's not up to his mother to "let" him do anything. I don't get the blame or anger toward the cousin's mother. Feels to me like the anger should be directed to the person who she entrusted her children to while at work? What am I missing here?

Mr. Propps has some 'splaining to do and if LE want to talk to him they dang well will do so, mommy or no.

Is it true that unless an arrest warrant is issued, a person does not have to speak to LE? Is it true that people will follow the recommendations of family or lawyers when it comes to speaking to LE? What would LE need to do to compel this cousin to speak to them if he (or those he is listening to) refuses to voluntarily do so?

 

[georgiajean]

A good local article. East Texas officials looking for new information in connection to 2022 homicides of 3 children
Says children reported missing about 9 pm. That's as mom was driving home from work after cousin called her from a neighbor's phone. (So cousin did not have a phone? And most likely the house didn't have a phone, cell phones have become home phones for so many now. How long from when children went missing to when cousin noticed to when cousin took the effort to go to a neighbors to call?)

“Multiple witness statements have been obtained, DNA testing is ongoing, and the investigation will continue,” the DA’s office said.

 

[loveplace]

I just came across this story today and Im shocked there isn't more discussion or news about this.

Cass County sisters recovered from pond in July 2022 victims of homicide, prosecutor says

LINDEN, Texas -- Three sisters whose bodies were found in a neighbor's pond are now believed to be victims of homicide.

www.texarkanagazette.com

 

[tlcya]

Is it true that unless an arrest warrant is issued, a person does not have to speak to LE? Is it true that people will follow the recommendations of family or lawyers when it comes to speaking to LE? What would LE need to do to compel this cousin to speak to them if he (or those he is listening to) refuses to voluntarily do so?

Absolutely - Mr. Propps has the same right anyone else does to remain silent and refuse to talk with police. Given he was the last adult to see the 3 dead children, who were in his care and custody, I doubt a refusal to cooperate will do anything other than LE getting a warrant that will force him to at least sit in a room with them refusing on the record to assist in a murder investigation.

He is at the very least a key witness and likely a POI. So I guess it depends on how he would like to be viewed, as a cooperating witness or the prime suspect. Either way, at 31, his mother has no say at all in whether he talks to police. Ultimately Propps must decide. His lack of cooperation has placed him at the tippy top of my suspect list.