A pregnant mother from Indianapolis was found dead in Mexico four months after she went missing with her seven children.
Makala Pendley‘s body was found on a dirt road in the Elambó Bajo community in the municipality of Zinacantán in the state of Chiapas on the morning of Monday, June 8, according to El Heraldo de Chiapas.
Chiapas state prosecutor Jorge Luis Llaven Abarca said in a police briefing that initial findings indicated Pendley’s cause of death was traumatic brain injury caused by blunt-force trauma, according to FOX59.
Pendley’s body was reportedly dumped between eight and 12 hours before it was discovered, according to reports. Meanwhile, state officials confirmed the body was Pendley, 30, per El Heraldo de Chiapas.
Llaven Abarca also shared that Pendley’s seven children have been located and confirmed they were all safe in protective custody.
“They are … under the protection of the authorities, while the necessary arrangements are being made with the United States Embassy so that relatives can take custody of them,” Llaven Abarca said.
After Pendley’s body was found, her partner – identified only as Joseph “N” – was arrested and is now in the custody of the Public Prosecutor’s Office. Llaven Abarca added that he is now considered the “main suspect,” and authorities will ask for a maximum sentence of 100 years if he is found guilty.
It is not currently clear if the suspect has retained legal counsel or entered a plea.
Pendley was pregnant at the time of her disappearance, and her sister Maurica Lambert told FOX59 that she was at least six months along.
“She was a good mom,” Lambert said. “As moms, you know, we have our bad days, you know what I mean? And she was a good mom, though. She put her kids before she put anything.”
Pendley and her seven children were reported missing in February by the Indianapolis Metropolitan Police Department, according to the Indianapolis Star.
A spokesperson for the IMPD confirmed that Pendley and her kids were found in Mexico in May, according to People. Mexican authorities took the children into custody, but they were later returned to Pendley.
After Pendley’s death was confirmed, her family launched a GoFundMe page to support her children.
“This is the worst time in my life, my mom’s life; all of our lives have been affected and shattered,” Pendley’s sister Jennifer Lambert wrote in the page. “Makala was a mother before anything,”
Jennifer also shared that Makala welcomed her first child when she was just 16 years old.
“She is survived by all her kids except for the one that went with her to heaven,” Jennifer continued. “My mom, my brother, my sister, and I are devastated and don’t really have any funds to help us right now, so anything is appreciated. Just prayers for the kids and all of us. Thank you and God bless.”
