Sabrina Pina, 27 Vanished while shopping, NW Houston, TX - BODY FOUND

[MuffyBee]

Body in ditch may be missing woman's
27-year-old went missing while shopping in northwest Houston
By ANITA HASSAN
Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle
Feb. 22, 2009, 9:02PM
nvestigators are trying to determine whether a body found early Sunday in a ditch in northwest Harris County belongs to a 27-year-old woman who disappeared while shopping earlier this weekend.

A motorist spotted the remains of an unidentified woman around 7 a.m. on the side of the road at Jack Road near Warren Ranch Road.

The woman was described as a late Hispanic or white female in her late 20s to early 30s. She was wearing a black shirt, blue jeans, white and tan shoes and a white jacket with a hood, authorities said.

Investigators are looking into all possible leads as to the woman's identity, including missing person's reports, said Harris County Sheriff's spokesman Lt. John Legg.

"There have been no positive identification made at this time," he said.

Two women have been reported missing in the Houston area in recent days, including 27-year-old Sabrina Pina, who was last seen shopping at a Kohl's store at Highway 249 and Spring Cypress Saturday afternoon.

She was last seen wearing a black 3/4 length sleeve knit shirt, blue jeans and white leather Cole Haan tennis shoes.

Her car was found outside a Kohl's store on Highway 249 filled with shopping bags, according to the Texas Equusearch, which called off a their search efforts around 6:45 p.m. this evening, saying they were waiting for new information.

Authorities are also still searching for Susana De Jesus, who was kidnapped at gunpoint on Feb. 2 after she left work from a Pearland women's clothing store.

A man wearing a mask with a pistol forced her into her car and drove away while another person followed in a dark van or SUV.

An hour later, a man was photographed by a security camera at a Houston bank while he used De Jesus' card to withdraw cash from an ATM. The car was found the next morning in another Houston location, but De Jesus was not, authorities said.

Volunteers have suspended the ground search for the 37-year-old woman, but investigators were still working on the case.
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/6275761.html

[MuffyBee]

Woman's body found dumped in ditch
Sunday, February 22, 2009 | 6:13 PM
(Video Included-go to link at bottom of article)
 Investigators are trying to identify the body and figure out how it got there. The victim was found off Warren Ranch and Jack Road near the Waller County line.

Deputies say a passerby spotted the body around 7am Sunday. They tell us the woman was either a white or Hispanic woman in her 20s or 30s. They do not believe the body had been there very long.
 They are calling this a homicide, saying they did find evidence of foul play. They do not know if she was killed at the ditch or dumped there later.

The woman's body has been taken to the medical examiner's office for an autopsy.

Law enforcement is paying close attention to reports of missing women in the area. Two women have gone missing in the Houston area in the last few weeks. One of them disappeared yesterday near Tomball.

Family and friends are passing out flyers Sunday looking for Sabrina Tolentino Pina. Investigators say she disappeared while running errands in northwest Harris County. Her husband last spoke with her just before noon Saturday. Her truck was found in a Kohl's parking lot off 249 and Spring Cypress with her bags still inside.

Pina's family is desperate to find her and her husband says it's not like her to be out of touch.

"I hope she's safe," said her husband Edward Pina. "We're working hard to get her back. All I care about is her safety."

"I didn't get any sleep last night, but you have to do what you have to do, when you love your kids," said Mary Helen Tolentino who is Sabrina Pina's mother.

Her family doesn't believe Sabrina actually went into the Kohl's store. They say there's some surveillance video from a nearby sonic restaurant, showing her pulling in for lunch. But, after that, there's been no contact with her. It's been almost three weeks since another Houston area woman went missing.

Susana De Jesus disappeared outside her job in Pearland back on February 2nd. Investigators say she was forced into her car at gunpoint. She hasn't been seen since. A man was later caught on camera, driving De Jesus's car. The car later turned up. That driver hasn't been found.

If you know anything about the previous cases give Crime Stoppers a call. The number is 713-222-TIPS. You don't have to give your name.
http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=6672388

[Nut44x4]

Lots of comments here>
http://www.khou.com/topstories/stories/khou090222_mp_pina-disappearance.3f74cfb3.html

[Nut44x4]

Woman Last Seen in Store Near Tomball
Last Edited: Monday, 23 Feb 2009, 8:17 AM CST
Created On: Monday, 23 Feb 2009, 7:30 AM CST

HOUSTON - Deputies and other organizations are searching for a woman who disappeared from a northwest Harris County shopping center on Saturday afternoon.

Sabrina Tolentino Pina, 27, has not been seen since running errands in the Spring-Cypress area. Authorities say her husband spoke to her just before noon.

Pina's truck was later found in the parking lot of a Kohl's store at the22500 block of State Highway 249, the Tomball Parkway, near Spring-Cypress Road. Her shopping bags were still inside the vehicle.

Along with friends and family, Texas EquuSearch surveyed the area on Sunday, but decided to suspend the search because of new information they could not disclose.

There is a reward for information that can help find Pina. If you have any information, you are asked to contact the Harris County Sheriff's Office at 713-221-6000.
http://www.myfoxhouston.com/dpp/news/090223_woman_missing_near_tomball

[Nut44x4]

informative video
http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=6672388

[Nut44x4]

Body identified as missing woman
Monday, February 23, 2009 4:30 PM

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- The body of a woman found in a ditch in northwest Harris County is that of Sabrina Pina. She disappeared from a department store on Saturday.

Late Monday afternoon Harris county homicide confirmed the death of Pina. Her body was found in a ditch not long after she vanished while shopping off Highway 249 and Spring Cypress Road.

Family members were hoping to find their missing loved one, but certainly not like this. Sabrina's family says they know she had been shopping in the Willowbrook area. She had called her husband as she made several stops at Lens Crafters, Target, Home Depot and management at a nearby Sonic says they have video of her vehicle making a stop there.

"We're Christians and we believe in faith. We go to mass all the time," said Edward Pina, Sabrina's husband. "We are honest people."

Edward says they had dinner plans, but she never showed up.

"The thing is she's a very punctual person," he said. "I left work around 5 and called and it went straight to voice mail."

The family quickly mobilized help from friends, family and church members and spent the day passing out flyers and mapping out searches of the area.

Edward says they have been happily married for three years and he's not aware of any problems at home or at her work.

Pina's father, Rolando Tolentino, found her truck in the parking lot of Kohl's about a mile and a half from their home.

"The glove box was closed. The packages were in the back. I just assumed she was out shopping and forgot her dinner appointment," he said.

If anyone has information about this case, they're asked to call the Harris County Sheriff's Department.
http://abclocal.go.com/ktrk/story?section=news/local&id=6674351

[Nut44x4]

Hundreds gather in memory of Sabrina Pina

10:46 PM CST on Monday, February 23, 2009
Pina prayer service
February 23, 2009
View larger
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More Video
SPRING, Texas -- Grief and heartache hung heavy in the air as hundreds of people streamed into a Spring church Monday night.

They were there to mourn the loss of a young woman who disappeared while shopping on Saturday. On Monday, investigators positively identified the body of Sabrina Pina.

She had been shot, her body dumped on the side of the road about 18 miles from where she was last seen alive.

"When something like this happens to good people, it just tears you up inside," said Kristine Gonzalez, a family friend.

Sabrina's best friend spoke to the mourners at Christ the Good Shepherd Catholic Church.

"Sabrina's life was more than what just happened to her," said Tatiana Armenta. "She needs to be remembered for the 27 wonderful years she gave us."

The victim's father spoke briefly to friends and family saying, "Our hearts are ripped open. We can hardly breathe. But with every hug, every text message you are stitching our hearts back, little by little."

Earlier, Rolando Tolentino said he was trying to be strong for his wife and son-in-law.

"I am trying to hold up for them as much as I can. I cry when they don't see me," Tolentino said.

A family friend is offering a $5,000 reward in the case.

Dr. Byron Holt said he had known Pina since she was a young girl.

"[Pina] graduated from UT with a biochemistry degree. Very bright, a lot to give this community and taken off this earth," Dr. Holt said.

And even in their grief, they are reaching out to another victim's family. It's been three weeks since Susana De Jesus vanished from a Pearland shopping center.

"I told her that we will pray for her and that we are sorry that her sister has not been found," said Armenta. "And I asked her to pray for us, too."

Authorities are reviewing surveillance video and will only say that they have active leads.
http://www.txcn.com/sharedcontent/dws/txcn/houston/stories/khou090223_mh_pina_prayer_vigil.46b26084.html

[Nut44x4]

Man Charged In Shopper's Slaying
updated 5 minutes ago

HOUSTON - A man has been charged with capital murder in connection with the death of a woman who disappeared while shopping, KPRC Local 2 reported Wednesday.

Sabrina Pina was last seen on Saturday. Her pickup truck was found parked outside a Kohl's store on state Highway 249 near Spring Cypress Road. Her body was discovered about 15 miles away on Sunday.

Harris County sheriff's deputies said they arrested 27-year-old Theodore Schmidt at the Carrington Place Apartments on F.M. 1960 near Eldridge Parkway at about 7 p.m. Tuesday.

"We heard the door bust in and they started saying, 'FBI. Everybody get down,'" a neighbor said.

Investigators took pictures in a garage at the complex and took items from inside Schmidt's apartment in building 7000.

Pina and Schmidt knew each other, investigators said.

According to court documents, Schmidt shot Pina in the head after he kidnapped and robbed her. A passer-by found her body in a ditch near Hockley, officials said. She was bound with duct tape that had Schmidt's fingerprints on it, investigators said.

Detectives said dogs found Schmidt's scent on Pina's body.

Pina's rosary will be held at St. Ignatius Catholic Church in Spring at 7 p.m. Thursday. Her funeral will be held at Christ the Good Shepherd Catholic Church in Spring at 11 a.m. Friday and she will be buried at Klein Memorial Park Mausoleum.

Anyone with information about Pina's death is asked to call 713-222-TIPS or the Harris County Sheriff's Department Homicide Division at 713-967-5810.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29384716/


What a little punk of a poor excuse for a man this one is.......

[MuffyBee]

Sheriff: Suspect and Spring woman were Klein classmates
Duct tape on victim yielded fingerprints that led to arrest, prosecutor says
By MIKE GLENN and JENNIFER LEAHY
Copyright 2009 Houston Chronicle
Feb. 25, 2009, 12:16PM

The man accused of abducting and killing Sabrina Pina was a classmate of hers at Klein High School, but insists that he has not had contact with her since then, an investigator said today.

Theodore Charles Schmidt, 27, was charged with capital murder early today but has not acknowledged that he killed the 27-year-old Pina, said Harris County sheriff's Lt. Rolf Nelson.

Schmidt was arrested at his apartment in northwest Houston on Tuesday night. Authorities said they focused on him after finding his fingerprints on duct tape that bound the woman's hands and covered her eyes.

Pina, who lived in Spring, was found dead in a ditch in northwest Harris County on Sunday morning. She had been shot in the head.

Nelson would not comment on other evidence uncovered by detectives, including whether Pina struggled with her abductor or was sexually assaulted.

Authorities were able to match the fingerprints from the duct tape to Schmidt because his prints were in county records after his arrest in September. He was indicted in December on a theft charge related to allegations that he sold merchandise on eBay to a New York man but never sent the goods.

A judge this morning ordered Schmidt held without bail on accusations that he abducted and killed Pina. The 27-year-old Spring resident was last seen alive on Saturday afternoon at a shopping center on the county's northwest side, investigators said.

Assistant District Attorney Donna Hawkins said investigators found "firearms evidence" consistent with the shooting of Pina inside Schmidt's apartment. She did not know what the specific evidence is, but said it could mean ammunition similar to the type that killed the victim.

Schmidt and Pina attended Klein High School at the same time, an official in the Klein school district confirmed. It was not immediately clear how well they knew each other.

“This is not a stranger case — they’d known each other for years,” said Lt. Nelson, of the sheriff’s Homicide Division.

A close friend and co-worker of Pina's, Tatiana Armenta, said this morning that she was relieved to learn of the arrest.

But, she added, "I don't know what to think."

Armenta said she vaguely recalls Schmidt's name, but does not remember where she heard it. She said she doesn't remember Pina ever mentioning it.

"I don't know who he is. I haven't heard anything about him," Armenta said.

She had not yet spoken with Pina's family about the arrest.

"They're having a very tough day," she said.

Schmidt was in court on Monday for a routine hearing on the theft charge, but authorities did not detain him then in connection with Pina's death.

He was charged with theft after receiving $6,400 from Martin Modzelewski, of Queens, N.Y., for a car engine and transmission he had advertised on eBay, according to court records.

After failing to received the goods he had paid for, Modzelewski went to police and Schmidt was arrested on Sept. 3, records show.

Pina was last seen alive Saturday afternoon outside a Kohl’s department store at Texas 249 and Spring Cypress, about 23 miles away. Investigators said they think she was abducted there.

Detectives examined surveillance video for clues, but homicide Sgt. Wayne Kuhlman would not say whether the store’s surveillance equipment captured anything suspicious.

“We have her (Pina) on surveillance camera, but I don’t want to go into any more detail,” Kuhlman said.

He also said Pina’s purse has not been recovered. Detectives are checking her cell phone records to see if a call was placed after her disappearance. There is no evidence that her bank or credit cards have been used since Saturday, officials said.

After meeting her husband at a Starbucks about 9:30 a.m. Saturday, Pina spent several hours shopping at stores along the 22500 to 28000 block of Texas 249. Her last stop was at the Kohl’s store, detectives said.

“We’re confident that around 2 p.m., something happened out there in that Kohl’s parking lot,”’ Kuhlman said.

Pina’s clothed body was found about 7 a.m. Sunday in a ditch along Jack Road near Warren Ranch Road.
Online tributes

While investigators worked to press charges on Schmidt, Pina’s family and friends made plans for her memorial services.

Many left online tributes to her, recalling Pina’s “enthusiasm” and “lovely smile.”

Armenta, Pina’s good friend and co-worker at TXU Energy’s marketing department, said Pina joked about pulling down the wall that separated their desks in one of their final conversations.

“Just so we could work in the same cubicle together,” Armenta said.

Chronicle reporter Jennifer Latson contributed to this report.

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/front/6277903.html