Juanita Velazquez Mata was a young woman found murdered near Pflugerville, Texas, on July 19, 1980.
She was identified in July 1981. Her death may be tied to serial killings in the area.
Case[]
Disappearance[]
Juanita Velazquez Mata left her home to look for a job. When she could not find one, she planned to head home but was not seen or heard from again.
Discovery[]
On July 19, 1980, a young Hispanic woman was found near Pflugerville. She was stabbed 27 times in the chest, back, abdomen, arms, and thighs with a screwdriver. Her clothes were at her thighs, but there were no signs of sexual assault. In 1981, police identified her as Juanita.
Investigation[]
Police had several suspects in Juanita's murder and felt confident that they knew who killed her. However, between 1976 and 1981, the Interstate 35 section of Texas experienced 22 murders of female and male hitchhikers and stranded motorists, leading authorities to believe that a serial killer was involved. Juanita is listed as a victim of the I-35 Murders, although some sources may still list her as a Jane Doe. Other listed victims include Debra Jackson and Carol DeLeon. Only a small handful of the murders have been solved.
Henry Lee Lucas[]
After being convicted for killing Becky Powell and Kate Rich in 1983, Henry Lee Lucas confessed to killing most of the I-35 murders. It is not clear if he specifically confessed to killing Juanita, as her case was not listed in the Lucas Report.
While in custody, Lucas and his partner Otis Toole confessed to killing hundreds of people with the Lucas Task Force, headed by the Texas Rangers, closing 213 murder cases. However, it was eventually determined that Lucas falsely confessed to most of the cases, with authorities significantly enabling him by bribing him with privileges or letting him read cold case files to confess. Lucas would recant all of his confessions, including the I-35 murders. Eventually, he was convicted of eleven murders, suspected of more, and died on March 12, 2001.
During the week of Juanita's murder, the Lucas Report indicates Lucas sold a total of 2021 pounds of scrap metal in Jacksonville, Florida. He also confessed to the July 20, 1980, murder of Tammi Connors in Jacksonville. Based on these circumstances, and given that it would have taken Lucas one day to travel to Pflugerville and back to Jacksonville without stopping, it is unlikely that he killed Juanita.
Media[]
- Juanita's murder is included in the 2009 Encyclopedia of Unsolved Crimes, although she was still referred to as "Jane Doe."
Sources[]
- CrimeZZZ
- The Lucas Report
- Medium
- The Oklahoman
- Henry Lee Lucas on Wikipedia