6-Year-Old Girl Found in Trash Bag After Allegedly Being Killed by Adoptive Parents Years Ago
( Image: Rose Hill Police Department)
ROSE HILL, KS — The body of a six-year-old girl, missing for nearly five years, was discovered in a trash bag, leading to the arrest of her adoptive parents on murder charges. Crystina Schroer, 50, and Joseph Schroer, 53, are now facing charges of first-degree murder, child abuse, and kidnapping after authorities found the remains of their daughter, Kennedy, buried in their backyard.
The case began on September 10, when police responded to a distress call about an individual threatening self-harm at a residence in Rose Hill, located 20 miles southeast of Wichita. Upon arrival, officers found no firearm, but the situation took a shocking turn when they received information about a possible past homicide linked to the property.
The following day, investigators uncovered “the possibility of human remains” in the backyard. Authorities used cadaver dogs and a brush hog to clear overgrown vegetation, leading to the grim discovery of Kennedy’s body inside a garbage bag at a second search site.
Rose Hill Police Chief Taylor Parlier confirmed that the couple is believed to be solely responsible for the crime, stating, “At this time, we have no evidence that there should be anybody else that’s going to be charged,” as reported by KAKE.
A coroner’s report determined that Kennedy, born Natalie Garcia, died from “probable suffocation,” ruling her death a homicide. She was adopted by the Schroers in 2019 and is believed to have died in late 2020, according to the Topeka Capital-Journal.
In addition to murder charges, Crystina Schroer faces counts of felony theft, forgery, Medicaid fraud, and desecration of a corpse. Joseph Schroer has been charged with obstruction of justice, liability for crimes of another, felony theft, and Medicaid fraud.
Authorities have not disclosed a motive for the killing, but the case has sent shockwaves through the community as residents struggle to understand how a child could suffer such a fate at the hands of those who were supposed to protect her.
This tragic case emerges as another chilling crime unfolds. In Argentina, teenage sweethearts Paloma Gallardo, 16, and Josue Salvatierra, 14, disappeared after going to the gym on January 30. Their bodies were found three days later in a homeless encampment, brutally beaten to death with a rock.
Paloma’s grieving father, evangelical pastor and YouTuber Omar Gallardo identified her remains, stating, “I can’t describe what had been done to my daughter’s body.”
As authorities continue their investigations into these devastating cases, communities on both sides of the hemisphere are left grappling with heartbreak and calls for justice.
