Grand jury indicts both suspects in murder of 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray

HOUSTON – A Harris County grand jury has indicted both suspects in the murder of 12-year-old Jocelyn Nungaray.

The grand jury on Friday filed capital indictments against 26-year-old Franklin Pena and 22-year-old Johan Jose Martinez-Rangel.

The two men, illegal immigrants from Venezuela, are accused of strangling Nungaray. Her body was found in a creek in Houston's Greenspoint neighborhood on June 17.

Thanks to video surveillance, officers were able to track down the two suspects and arrest them a few days later in a nearby apartment complex.

Since then, one of the suspects, Pena, has filed for a temporary restraining order to prevent prosecutors and others connected to the case from speaking publicly about it. His lawyers said the news blackout was necessary to ensure that media attention about the case did not deny their client a fair trial.

The motion for a gag order was denied, but Judge Josh Hill issued an alternative gag order.

Hill ruled that the wording of the original potential news blackout was too broad, as it imposed speech restrictions on thousands of employees, including those in the Houston Police Department, the forensic center and court personnel.

Judge Hill's new gag order includes many of the restrictions on public communications that Peña's lawyers sought to impose.

The main difference is that these restrictions apply only to the parties directly involved in the case, including the lawyers, witnesses and other persons associated with the case. The order even extends to the placement of interns in the respective law offices.

The order specifically prohibits all parties and witnesses in the case from discussing any aspect of the case in a public forum, including speaking to the media or posting on social media.

Pena's next court date is set for October 30. Martinez-Rangel is scheduled to appear in court on November 11. Both dates are arraignments.