Inset: Dulce Gomez (Tarrant County Sheriff’s Office). Background: The area in Texas where Gomez smothered a 9-month-old boy in November 2024 (Google Maps).
A 59-year-old babysitter in Texas has been sentenced to prison for smothering a 9-month-old in her care with a pillow nearly two years ago.
Tarrant County Judge Julie Lugo on Monday sentenced Dulce Gomez to 30 years in a state correctional facility in connection with the death of Fabian Arjon, authorities announced.
Lugo imposed the sentence after Gomez struck a plea deal with prosecutors and pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of murder. She had initially been facing one count of capital murder of a person under 10 years old.
Gomez must serve at least 15 years of her sentence before she is eligible for parole, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported.
According to the Tarrant County District Attorney’s Office, officers with the Fort Worth Police Department and emergency medical personnel responded on Nov. 4, 2024, to a home on West Vista Circle for a report of an unresponsive infant. Paramedics transported the baby to Cook Children’s Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
The medical examiner determined that Fabian’s manner of death was a homicide and the cause of death was suffocation, prosecutors said. Authorities have released few details about Fabian’s death but said Gomez smothered the child with a pillow, according to The Hanford Sentinel.
Authorities have not provided a motive for the killing or explained Gomez’s relationship to Fabian and his family.
During Monday’s sentencing hearing, Lugo questioned Gomez about the plea agreement and her immigration status, the Star-Telegram reported. Gomez reportedly acknowledged that she is not a U.S. citizen and confirmed that she understood she could be deported as a result of her conviction.
If Gomez had been convicted on the capital murder charge, she would have faced a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the chance for parole.
“Thanks to the Fort Worth Police Department for their work on this case and for their commitment to keeping our community safe,” the DA’s office said in a statement posted to its Facebook page.
