Sandra Cantu Wiki, Biography
After coming home from school, 9-year-old Sandra Cantú went out to play with her friends, but on March 27, 2009, she did not return home. An investigation into the case began after her parents reported Cantú’s disappearance and several people were put under the lens. However, everything began to fall into place after her body was found a few days later inside a suitcase.
The chilling story of the murder will be uncovered in Investigation Discovery’s latest series, See No Evil. The episode, titled “Someone You Trust,” is scheduled to air on January 11 at 9 p.m.
This is the episode synopsis:
In 2009 Tracy, California, a little girl goes missing after playing at a friend’s house of hers, leaving her family desperate for answers; With no leads and few leads, investigators must rely on surveillance footage to piece together the horrific truth.
Before you watch the episode, here are some chilling facts to know about the case.
The backstory, what happened to Sandra Cantú and more
Sandra Cantú came home from school around 4 pm on March 27, 2009 and left her house to see if her friends wanted to play with her. An hour had passed and she had not returned. Her mother was not worried because coming home late sometimes was normal for her.
It was 7 PM and she still hadn’t returned and finally her mother decided to raise the alarm. She called the police and an investigation was opened into the case.
When Cantu left the playhouse, her mother informed police that she was wearing a pink Hello Kitty top and black tights. The area was thoroughly searched by the police. There was no sign of Sandra anywhere.
The images from the security cameras turned out to be the key to the case.
Fortunately, Sandra’s grandparents had installed security cameras outside the house. It was this camera that helped the investigation immensely.
Sandra’s final footage, caught on camera, was of her jumping into her neighbor’s house. The footage was not solid evidence at the time, but it later became a tool to zero in on the perpetrator.
A pedophile, Sandra’s biological father, a school teacher were questioned
In getting to the bottom of the case, no stone was left unturned. A pedophile neighbor who once kissed Sandra on the lips has been put under the lens of investigators. The man admitted to police that he liked younger girls, but he was soon released with a warning.
Sandra’s biological father, Daniel, was also questioned, but since he had a reasonable alibi, he was ruled out.
The neighbor’s tip
The Sandra Cantú case was a challenge to investigate. A $30,000 prize was offered, but when some matches began to occur, the detectives began to make some progress in solving the case.
Melissa Huckaby, a school teacher and also a neighbor, sent a text message to Cantu’s mother the day Sandra disappeared, “Tell the police something was stolen today around 4 p.m. I don’t know if that makes a difference or not.”
While the text was ignored before but when the same woman also found a note that said “Cantu locked in stolen suitcase. Thrown into the water at Bacchetti Road and Whitehall Road. Witness,” the doorbell rang.
The final clue was provided by a retired US Marine and his wife when they claimed to have seen Huckaby at the irrigation pond the day Sandra disappeared.
Armed with other evidence and video footage, the police arrested Huckaby.
Huckaby was sentenced to life in prison
Although Huckaby pleaded not guilty, she could not run from the evidence that the police had obtained. On April 10, 2009, Huckaby was arrested and charged with Cantu’s murder.
Media reports revealed that Sandra had been drugged and sexually assaulted before being thrown into a pond inside a suitcase.