REOPENED: Justice for Eglena

Summary

Cold Case Files: REOPENED: Justice for Eglena

Host: Paula Barros
Produced by: A&E / PodcastOne
Release Date: March 27, 2025

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Introduction

In the gripping episode titled "REOPENED: Justice for Eglena," hosted by Paula Barros, Cold Case Files delves into the harrowing cold case of Eglena Diaz de Leon. This case, emblematic of the many unresolved murders in America, showcases the relentless pursuit of justice through advancements in forensic technology and dedicated law enforcement efforts.

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The Crime: A Night of Celebration Turned Tragedy

Timestamp [00:06]:
The story unfolds on September 16, 1992, in Sanguine, Texas, during the city's Independence Festival. Eglena Diaz de Leon, a 15-year-old high school student, attended the celebration with her friends against her mother's initial hesitance.

Timestamp [01:21]:
As the festivities wound down around 2 a.m., a solitary beat cop discovered Eglena's lifeless body in the courtyard of a nearby church. Officer Maureen Watson and Detective Jimmy Limmer were the first responders to the gruesome scene.

Timestamp [02:10]:
Maureen Watson recounts the shock of discovering Eglena, stating, “It was shocking. It was sad. And for me, a young patrolman, it was overwhelming.”

Timestamp [02:18]:
Detective Jimmy Limmer provides a chilling detail: “The body was totally disrobed. No shoes, no clothes, no jewelry, nothing.”

Eglena's tragic end was the result of a calculated attack—strangulation followed by a fatal stab wound to her neck, suggesting the precision and intent of a seasoned perpetrator.

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Initial Investigation: Clues and Suspects

Timestamp [02:44]:
Officer Watson discovered a bandana near a storm drain, which she immediately recognized and secured as potential evidence. Unfortunately, the blood smears present were inadequate for DNA analysis at the time.

Timestamp [04:01]:
The investigation led detectives to Eglena's mother, Atsi de Leon, who expressed her maternal instincts: “I can remember a couple of them that I didn't like... as a mother.”

Despite several leads, including a sketch of a male Hispanic in his 20s with a distinctive haircut resembling Steven Seagal’s style, initial suspicions fell short of concrete evidence.

Timestamp [06:30]:
Detective Jimmy Limmer described identifying Guadalupe Sandoval as a suspect: “Oh, he was a dead ringer for the guy in the sketch... He had fresh hair clippings on his shirt.”

However, insufficient physical evidence and conflicting alibis led the case to stagnate, eventually being relegated to the cold files.

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The Case Goes Cold: Lingering Doubts

Timestamp [08:34]:
District Attorney Bud Kuykendall acknowledged the challenges: “We just didn't have enough to connect him to the crime.”

Eglena's family remained devastated, relying on faith and the hope that justice would one day prevail:
Atsi de Leon: “I knew it would happen one day because I never gave up that hope.”

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Reopening the Case: The Texas Rangers Take Charge

Timestamp [11:31]:
A decade later, Lieutenant Antonio Leal of the Texas Rangers took interest in the cold case, determined to provide answers for Eglena's family and restore peace to the community.

Timestamp [13:28]:
Leal revisited the evidence, focusing on the previously overlooked bandana.
Antonio Leal: “When you're reviewing a cold case, something was missed the first time. So we don't, in investigating cold cases, ignore any piece of evidence.”

Under his leadership, the Texas Rangers employed modern DNA analysis techniques to re-examine the evidence, revealing a breakthrough.

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Breakthrough: DNA Evidence Secures the Link

Timestamp [14:04]:
Chad Hanley, a DNA analyst, identified a male genetic profile on the bandana:
Chad Hanley: “It was a wide area, possibly something from nasal mucus or sweat... It does give you something to have some hope with.”

This DNA profile matched Guadalupe Sandoval, corroborating the original suspicions and providing the necessary evidence to move forward.

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The Trial: Bringing Sandoval to Justice

Timestamp [17:08]:
With the DNA evidence in hand, District Attorney Bud Kuykendall emphasized the strength of the case:
Bud Kuykendall: “This is what we'd been looking for. This took a circumstantial case that was a house of cards and made it into a brick wall.”

Timestamp [19:18]:
Maureen Watson revisited her pivotal moment of evidence collection:
Maureen Watson: “My memories of that night were vivid. I had no problem going back 10 years. I can remember that moment like it was frozen in time.”

The prosecution hinged on the bandana's DNA, while defense struggled to explain the incriminating evidence.

Timestamp [20:17]:
The estranged wife of Sandoval testified against him, revealing his violent tendencies:
Bud Kuykendall: “One of the things he did sometimes was to choke women into submission for sex, and he had done that to her.”

Ultimately, Sandoval was found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to 75 years in prison.

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Aftermath and Justice: Healing and Reflection

Timestamp [20:46]:
Lieutenant Leal reflected on the complexity of justice:
Antonio Leal: “Would you rather him gone to prison when he was a loser and had nothing to lose? Or is it more punishment to go to prison when he’s gained all these things...”

The resolution of Eglena's case provided solace to her family and underscored the importance of perseverance in cold cases.

Timestamp [21:38]:
Atsi de Leon shared her enduring faith and hope for other victims:
Atsi de Leon: “We're doing it also for other victims, other families that have gone through this and for them to have hope that it'll come to one day.”

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Conclusion

The "REOPENED: Justice for Eglena" episode of Cold Case Files is a testament to the unwavering commitment of law enforcement and the advancements in forensic science that breathe new life into decades-old mysteries. Eglena Diaz de Leon's story not only delivers justice but also serves as a beacon of hope for countless unresolved cases, affirming that no case is ever truly cold when there is determination and faith in the pursuit of truth.

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Content Warning: This episode contains descriptions of violence and sexual assault. Listener discretion is advised.

Transcript

[Brooke Giddings]

This episode contains descriptions of violence and sexual assault. Use your best judgment. This episode contains descriptions of violence. Use your best judgment. Mexico celebrates its Independence Day on September 16th. A lot like Americans celebrate the 4th of July. There are parades and parties and fireworks. The city of Sanguine, Texas, held an independence festival on September 16, 1992. Eglena Diaz de Leon was 15, a high schooler. She wanted to go with her friends to the celebration. Her mother was hesitant, but she let Eglana go on her own. She trusted her daughter. So Eglana went to the festival with her friends. But she never made it home.

[Bill Curtis]

Like moths to a flame, the people are drawn to the bright lights of a Texas carnival. They are young, mostly looking for a night out and a bit of fun. None realize they are being watched by a killer and that one amongst them has already been marked for death. A little past 2am and the carnival is closed for the night. A solitary beat cop picks his way past the festival grounds and into the courtyard of a nearby church. In a dark corner, behind a statue of St Andrew, he sees a figure outlined in black. It is the body of a young woman. Officer Maureen Watson and Detective Jimmy Limmer are called to the crime scene.

[Maureen Watson]

It was shocking. It was. It was sad. And for me, a young patrolman, it was overwhelming.

[Jimmy Limmer]

The body was totally disrobed. No shoes, no clothes, no jewelry, nothing.

[Bill Curtis]

Detective Limmer sends Officer Watson back into the streets surrounding the church, looking for any scrap of evidence that might tie into the body. At the corner of Nolte and Milam, about a block from the church, Watson finds exactly that.

[Maureen Watson]

The beam of my flashlight caught what looked to me like possibly an article of clothing that was stuck in the storm drain. And as I got closer, I recognized it to be a bandana.

[Bill Curtis]

Watson bags the bandana and forwards it to the crime lab, where forensics isolates smears of human blood in 1992. However, the stains are insufficient for DNA testing. Meanwhile, the body is sent to the morgue, where it is eventually identified as Eglina de Leon, a Seguin girl who attended the festival the previous evening. The coroner believes deleon was first strangled, then suffered a single stab wound, severing a major artery in the victim's neck.

[Jimmy Limmer]

It was like everything done to her was for effect. There was no peripheral injury anywhere. Every injury that was done to her was for effect.

[Bill Curtis]

Whoever killed Iglina deleon selected his victim carefully and was precise in his attack. Both signs of a serial killer. Detective Limmer needs to move fast. One of the first things he does pay a visit to the victim's family.

[Atsi de Leon]

I already had a feeling that something wasn't right. As a mother, we know Atsi de.

[Bill Curtis]

La Garza is a mother with a premonition. When her daughter Eglena didn't come home from the Seguin festival, the uncomfortable feeling first settled in her mind. Throughout the hours that followed, it only got worse.

[Atsi de Leon]

I quickly called my mom and I said, mom, I want you to say a prayer for Eglena, because she didn't come home last night, and it wasn't like her not to notify me.

[Bill Curtis]

By afternoon, Atsi is at work when her other daughter calls about a report heard on the radio.

[Atsi de Leon]

It was in the news, already on the radio, and she says in the description it's Fatiglina. And when she told me that, I said, okay, baby, I'll be home.

[Bill Curtis]

Detectives eventually find their way to Atsi's front door with the news her daughter is dead. And asking if Atsi has any idea who might have done it. She suggests a couple of Eglena's high school friends.

[Atsi de Leon]

I can remember a couple of them that I didn't like. I said, eglena, I don't like you associating talking to these boys. Oh, mom, they're just my friends. I said, yes, love, I know, but, you know, I just as a mother.

[Bill Curtis]

Detectives check out Aglina's classmates, but can't spot a potential killer in the bunch. Meanwhile, whispers about the murder circulate through Seguin, and fresh leads begin to filter in. Two women share the story of a stranger they saw near the church on the night Aglina was killed and a gasp they heard emanating from inside the courtyard.

[Jimmy Limmer]

It's commonly referred to as a death rattle that a person makes. It's a final gasp for breath or exhaling as the body goes limp. And I think he was concerned that, oh, this person isn't done for. I believe that's when the stab wound to the side of her neck occurred.

[Bill Curtis]

The two women claim they got a look at the suspect, a male Hispanic in his 20s with a distinctive haircut.

[Jimmy Limmer]

Actor Steven Seagal his style. He used to wear his hair with the ponytail closely cut on the sides and pulled back into a ponytail.

[Bill Curtis]

Limmer provides a sketch for the press the next day. Several callers ID the man as a local named Guadalupe Sandoval.

[Jimmy Limmer]

Oh, he was a dead ringer for the guy in the sketch. And when we did find finally get him to come down and talk with us, he had fresh hair clippings on his Shirt on his collar area. One of the detectives brought out. Well, what's with the clippings on your collar? Well, then he had to admit that he did cut it off just that day.

[Bill Curtis]

Sandoval's makeover raises further suspicion among detectives who query their suspect about his activities on the night of the murder. Sandoval claims he attended the fiesta with his girlfriend and was home in bed an hour before Eglina de Leon disappeared. As soon as the interview is over, Limmer seeks to extract a statement from the suspect's girlfriend, totally contradicting what he said.

[Jimmy Limmer]

She said she he wasn't with her, that she didn't see him till small hours of the next morning. And at that time he was all sweaty and nervous and had changed clothes from the clothes she knew he had had on earlier. My impression of her was she was as afraid of him as anybody could be. She pretty much indicated that to us that she wouldn't doubt that it was him that did it. Because the way the victim was assaulted, the choking down part was he had done the same thing to her on several occasions when she resisted his advance of sexually that he would get angry and would choke her down.

[Bill Curtis]

Detectives search Sandoval's home and find a collection of martial arts swords. Forensic testing, however, fails to provide any link between Sandoval and the murder. Limmer discusses the case with District Attorney Bud Kuykendall, who believes detectives are on the right track but still have a few holes to fill.

[Bud Kuykendall]

We had people who saw him in the courtyard at the church, but one of them had picked out the wrong person in the lineup, were unable to identify him. They had seen him for seconds in the dark. We just didn't have enough to connect him to the crime.

[Bill Curtis]

In the days and weeks that follow, detectives pick through the small town of Seguin looking for some bit of evidence or another witness who might cinch their case against Sandoval. In the end, they come up with an ADA and the case gets dropped into the cold files.

[Atsi de Leon]

Thank you for being with us always and we will never forget you, of course.

[Bill Curtis]

Meanwhile, Eglena's family finds its comfort in a higher authority.

[Atsi de Leon]

I knew it would happen one day because I never gave up that hope. Because of my faith also, that we always have to, you know, have hope.

[Bill Curtis]

Hope and faith are good things, especially when leavened with a dose of the Texas Rangers, a law enforcement legend that brings Eglena de Leon's cold case in from the cold.

[Chad Hanley]

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[Brooke Giddings]

Guadalupe Sandoval matched the description that the witnesses had given. And as the primary suspect, he didn't help himself by lying about his alibi. But he wasn't arrested because even after searching his home, the investigators didn't have any physical evidence tying him to the murder.

[Antonio Leal]

We don't have murders like this in Seguin. I guess I can't say that because we had one.

[Bill Curtis]

Antonio Leal is a Texas Ranger assigned to the town of Seguin, Texas.

[Antonio Leal]

That's why this murder struck this community. You've got a young girl who was a what we call a true victim.

[Bill Curtis]

Leal's True victim is 15 year old Eglena De Leon, snatched from a community fiesta, her naked body found in a nearby church courtyard on a Sunday.

[Antonio Leal]

These people went to church. This happened on a weekend where there's police tape around your church. Those things burn into the memory.

[Bill Curtis]

Ten years after the case goes cold, Lieutenant Leal meets with Seguin's District attorney, Bud Kuykendall. On the agenda, justice for Eglena and answers for her family.

[Bud Kuykendall]

She suffered this horrible end. And that just has stuck with me forever and always will. Always will.

[Antonio Leal]

This is small town America and a girl should be able to. A girl or young man should be able to go to a county fair or fiesta without fear of being killed.

[Bill Curtis]

The two men know they have at least one outstanding suspect. A local spotted near the church courtyard at the time of the murder. A wannabe black belt named Guadalupe Sandoval.

[Bud Kuykendall]

We knew that something had compelled him to kill once. We didn't know if that would happen again. It was always the urgency to do something, but when you do it, you gotta do it right.

[Bill Curtis]

Doing it right means the use of DNA to develop a forensic link between Sandoval and the murder. It is something Leal, as head of the Rangers cold case unit, knows a thing or2about. DNA is to the modern Texas Rangers what the Colt revolver was to their forebears. A bit of technology that gives the lawman a leg up. With this forensic edge in mind, Lyal begins to review evidence in the DeLeon case.

[Antonio Leal]

When you're reviewing a cold case, something was missed the first time. So we don't, in investigating cold cases, ignore any piece of evidence. We look at all of them.

[Bill Curtis]

Lial is drawn to a blue bandana. In 1992, it was picked up by a rookie patrol officer who found it hooked on a storm drain about a block from the crime scene. Coupled with the bandana is an old lab report indicating the presence of blood of the same type as the victim. Leal is intrigued.

[Antonio Leal]

Maybe there's not blood anywhere else on this bandana, but maybe there's sweat, nasal mucus, something else on this bandana that might tell us either it is hers or it belongs to someone else.

[Bill Curtis]

The bandana, along with a box of other case evidence, is packed up and sent to Austin. A long shot at best, but one the Texas Rangers are willing to take. Chad Hanley is a DNA analyst with the Texas Department of Public Safety. He begins his work on the daily own evidence with a visual once over looking for anything that stands out.

[Chad Hanley]

There was a discolored area in the center of the bandana. It was a wide area, possibly something from nasal mucus or sweat.

[Bill Curtis]

With Hanley's coaxing, the ambiguous stain yields a bit of human DNA. Henley amplifies the sample and immediately notes the genetic profile is male.

[Chad Hanley]

Obviously at that time you have no idea who it's consistent with until the final profile is generated. But it does give you something to have some hope with.

[Bill Curtis]

The profile is compared to blood taken from Sandoval and provides a genetic match. Hainley then pulls a DNA profile from the human blood found on the bandana and matches it to the victim, Iglena de Leon.

[Chad Hanley]

But this is a very damning piece of evidence, and it causes the opportunity for a lengthy explanation from the suspect as to why his DNA is on a piece of evidence found at a crime scene and the victim's DNA is on the same piece of evidence.

[Bill Curtis]

Lt. Leal takes Hainley's work back into the field, into the streets of Seguin, where a theory of murder begins to take shape.

[Antonio Leal]

We're at the corner of Milam and Nolte, which is the corner where the bandana that ultimately became a key piece of evidence was located. It was located in a storm drain right here. To my left, the church is behind me and to the right where the murder scene was located.

[Bill Curtis]

Leal knows that the festival had shut down many of Seguin's streets on the night of the murder. The street where the bandana was found would be a logical route for Sandoval to walk to his car. The storm drain, a perfect place to dump a damning piece of evidence.

[Antonio Leal]

So the most logical thing that would have happened was whoever committed the murder, if their vehicle was parked to the north, would come east, and at the first street that wasn't barricaded, would then go north. This is that street.

[Bill Curtis]

Leal believes the bandana and its location in relation to the crime scene provide a blueprint for exactly what happened on the night Iglena de Leon was killed. The Texas Ranger presents his case to Bud Kuykendall, and the DA likes what he hears.

[Bud Kuykendall]

This is what we'd been looking for. This took a circumstantial case that was a house of cards and made it into a brick wall.

[Bill Curtis]

On June 17, 2002, Guadalupe Sandoval is arrested for the first degree murder of Aglina de Leon. For Eglena's family, it's a day they've been anticipating for almost 10 years.

[Atsi de Leon]

We were happy, you know, we said finally, you know, we're going to go through this, you know, trial and see who did it and let him get his, you know, punishment. I mean, you're going to reap what you sow in life.

[Chad Hanley]

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[Bill Curtis]

At trial. The state's case opens with a simple premise.

[Bud Kuykendall]

Defendant's mucus and the victim's blood. And no possible explanation for that other than that was the defendant's bandana that he tried to get rid of after he killed her.

[Bill Curtis]

If the defendant can explain how his DNA and the victim's blood got onto the same bandana, he walks. If not, according to the state, he is a murderer. Detective Maureen Watson was a rookie when she collected the bandana from the edge of a storm drain. She relives that moment for the jury.

[Maureen Watson]

My memories of that night were vivid. I had no problem going back 10 years. I can remember that moment like it was frozen in time.

[Bill Curtis]

Not all the prosecution witnesses are so easy. The defendant's wife, who was estranged from Sandoval when she cooperated with police in 1992, has now reconciled.

[Bud Kuykendall]

She was very reluctant to testify and I had to drag it out of her. But for the statements that have been taken by the PD and the Rangers, we wouldn't have gotten it.

[Bill Curtis]

Crukendall reminds Mrs. Sandoval about her statements in 1992. How she described cutting the defendant's ponytail after these sketches hit the press. And how she told police that Sandoval asked her to lie about his whereabouts on the night of the murder.

[Bud Kuykendall]

One of the things he did sometimes was to choke women into submission for sex, and he had done that to her.

[Bill Curtis]

Mrs. Sandoval's testimony closes the case. After three hours of deliberation, a Seguin jury finds sandoval guilty of first degree murder and sentences him to 75 years in prison. For some, justice delayed is indeed justice denied. The decade of freedom Sandoval enjoyed. Inherently unfair. Lt. Leal has another way of looking at things.

[Antonio Leal]

At the time we arrested him, he had established himself with a job. He had two children. He had a modest but brick home that he owned, two vehicles that he owned. So my question to people is he got away with this for 10 years. But would you rather him gone to prison when he was a loser and had nothing to lose? Or is it more punishment to go to prison when you've gained all these things and know they're gone for the rest of your life because of something you did in 1992 for the Ranger's.

[Bill Curtis]

New cold case unit, the Sandoval case is their first success, an important notch in the belt for the family of Iglena de Leon. The investigation provides answers to a question that never should have been asked.

[Atsi de Leon]

Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those. It's hard. You know he won it, but then again, you know you have to relive this thing. But we're doing it also for other victims, other families that have gone through this and for them to have hope that it'll come to one day.

[Brooke Giddings]

Guadalupe Sandoval was denied parole on August 1st of 2017. He won't have another parole hearing until August of 2022. He's 62 years old and serving his sentence in a Texas prison. Cold Case Files the podcast is hosted by Brooke giddings, produced by McKamey, Lynn and Steve Delamater. Our associate producer is Julie McGruder. Our executive producer is Ted Butler. Our music was created by Blake Maples. This podcast is distributed by Podcast one. The Cold Case Files TV series was produced by Curtis Productions and is hosted by Bill Curtis. You can find me brookeginnings on Twitter and rookthepodcaster on Instagram. I'm also active in the Facebook group Podcasts for Justice. Check out more Cold case [e-mail] or learn more about cases like this one by visiting the AE Real Crime [e-mail].

[Narrator]

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[Antonio Leal]

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[Jimmy Limmer]

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[Chad Hanley]

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