WASHINGTON — A 15-year-old Gaithersburg girl was stabbed to death after she was interrogated about the gang-related killing of a young man, according to testimony given during a hearing for one of the 10 people charged in connection with the girl’s disappearance and death.
NBC Washington reported that the details of Damaris Reyes Rivas’ killing emerged Thursday during a court hearing for 17-year-old Venus Romero Iraheta, of Alexandria, who will be tried as an adult.
Reyes Rivas’ body was found in a Springfield industrial park in February. She had been missing for about a month, and investigators believe she was killed in January. Her death had been described as “savage and brutal.”
Investigators testified in court that Iraheta delivered some of the stab wounds that led to Reyes Rivas’ death, NBC Washington reported.
Reyes Rivas was taken to Lake Accotink Park in Springfield, where she was assaulted and forced to stand in the lake’s cold water while she was questioned about the recent killing of Iraheta’s ex-boyfriend, Christian Sosa Rivas, NBC Washington reported.
The 21-year-old’s body was dumped in the Potomac River and his remains were found in the Dumfries area in January. Six people have been arrested in connection with Sosa Rivas’ gang-connected killing.
The names of all 10 facing charges have not been released because some are juveniles. At least one 17-year-old boy will also be tried as an adult, according to Fairfax County police.
Iraheta disappeared for about a month after Reyes Rivas death. She was quickly taken into police custody when she returned home on Feb. 14.
Kristi King reported from Fairfax, Virginia.
