Samuel Olson: Boy’s body was found wrapped in black bags and duct tape inside a plastic bin
Theresa Balboa, charged in connection to dead six-year-old, lost custody of her two similarly-aged daughters in 2019
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.The body of Samuel Olson was allegedly moved to a Texas motel inside a plastic bin sealed by zip-ties that smelled so bad it alerted the police.
When police arrived at the motel in Jasper, they found the six-year-old inside wrapped in black plastic and duct tape and Theresa Balboa, the girlfriend of his father, in the hotel room’s bathroom, according to local broadcaster KHOU11.
The network first reported details from the court records that said a man allegedly picked up Ms Balboa at a Walmart parking lot in Cleveland Texas and drove her and the plastic bin 88 miles north to the Best Western.
The Walmart meeting was recorded on camera on Tuesday evening, while the pair were seen on surveillance footage taking the bin from the truck to room 106 at the motel.
The "foul" smell was reportedly strong enough for the man to call Crime Stoppers with a tip about the motel and plastic bin after leaving Ms Balboa behind, according to the court papers.
Ms Balboa, 29, was arrested at the scene and has been charged with tampering with evidence. Houston Police Assistant Chief Heather Morris has said additional charges may be filed if appropriate, and that investigators are interviewing several more people.
Officers were continuing to interview the boy’s father Dalton Olson, but Ms Morris would not say whether or not he was a suspect.
Ms Balboa reported Samuel missing on 27 May, two days before his sixth birthday, telling police she handed Samuel to his mother Sarah Olson. Ms Olson’s attorney Marco Gonzalez told KTRK-TV that she had been denied access to the child for many months.
Court documents obtained by broadcaster KPRC2, meanwhile, revealed that Ms Balboa previously lost custody of her two daughters in 2019 after she didn’t show up to a custody hearing.
While the father of Ms Balboa’s children also skipped the hearing, he wrote a letter to the court explaining the difficult situation. KPRC2 reported that a separate family is now the legal guardian of Ms Balboa’s two girls, aged six and eight years old.
“I know she wasn’t taking good care of them. She wasn’t born to be a mom,” the guardian told KPRC2. “I tried to help her for many years.”