A girl who was found murdered with her body set on fire in Southern
California has been identified.

The victim, Marcia Shirree Thomas, 14, was a missing child from Reno,
Nevada, according to the Irvine Police Department.

Through DNA testing and years-long investigations, authorities were able
to identify the victim 15 years after her murder.

On Sept. 4, 2009, the young girl was lured into a van by two brothers in
Santa Ana � Zenaido Valdivia-Guzman and Gabino Valdivia-Guzman.

Zenaido was 23 at the time and his older brother, Gabino, was 30. Gabino
was driving the van and Zenaido was hiding in the backseat.

When Thomas entered the van, she began to panic after discovering Zenaido
was sitting in the back, police said. The girl began screaming and trying
to escape but Zenaido pulled her into the back area and began beating her
in the face and neck, authorities said. The older brother continued
driving as Zenaido assaulted the girl.

As she tried to escape, Zenaido eventually strangled her to death, police
said. Gabino drove the van to a business complex on the 1800 block of
Kettering Street in Irvine. That�s where the brothers dumped the girl�s
body in the parking lot, doused her with gasoline and set her on fire,
detectives said.

The brothers then took the girl�s cell phone and fled the scene.

The next morning, the girl�s body was discovered by employees who had
arrived at the complex for work. Police and homicide detectives arrived
and began searching for leads on the suspects.

On Nov. 5, 2010, over a year after the murder, Zenaido�s DNA was linked to
the girl�s murder stemming from a 2009 misdemeanor conviction for domestic
violence.

He was located the next day at a shopping center in Santa Ana where he was
taken into custody. His older brother, Gabino, was with him at the time
and was also arrested.

On Nov. 15, 2022, Zenaido was convicted by a jury of first-degree murder
and the special circumstance of murder in the commission of a kidnapping.

His brother, Gabino, will be tried at a future date.

�The Irvine Police Department has been committed to this case since 2009,�
said Police Chief Michael Kent. �Marcia�s family remains in our thoughts
during this difficult time. We appreciate the agencies that have assisted
in providing crucial information to support the case and the family.�

Anyone with additional information on the case can call Detective John
Sanders at 949-724- 7233.

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southern-california-identified/