An Odessa teenager arrested two years ago for allegedly shooting a 14-year-old to death is now facing another felony charge because authorities believe his sister and his mother have been smuggling vape pens containing THC to him at the jail.
According to court documents, Jose Manuel Cuellar, 18, is scheduled to go to trial in May on a murder charge in connection with the Feb. 16, 2021 shooting death of Fabian Reyna, 14.
Back in January, Cuellar’s sister, Kenya Astrid Cuellar, 19, was arrested on suspicion of bringing a prohibited substance into a correctional facility after being spotted on security camera footage passing a vape pen to her brother at the jail. According to an Ector County Sheriff’s Office report, Kenya Cuellar admitted she’d done the same thing at least five times before and during a subsequent investigation, authorities discovered Kenya Cuellar once stood watch as their mother, Marisela Vigil Zamudio, also slid a vape pen across the floor of the jail under a door to Jose Cuellar.
Kenya Cuellar is now facing one count of bringing a prohibited substance into a correctional facility and one count of engaging in organized criminal activity. She’s being held on an Immigration and Customs Enforcement hold and a $25,000 surety bond.
Zamudio was arrested on suspicion of engaging in organized criminal activity and released to the custody of ICE on Thursday.
Jose Cuellar was also arrested on suspicion of engaging in organized criminal activity last week. He remains in the Ector County jail on $500,000 in the murder case and $25,000 in the vape case. He’s also being held on an ICE hold.
