Texas Mother Sentenced to 25 Years for Abusing Daughter, 7, Found Locked in Closet; Sibling Still Missing

A Texas woman has been sentenced to 25 years in prison for locking her severely malnourished 7-year-old daughter in a closet, a crime that has shocked the community. Virginia Marie Gonzales, 33, pleaded guilty to two counts of injury to a child with intent to cause serious bodily harm after her daughter was discovered in horrendous conditions at their apartment in Travis County.

In April 2025, police responded to a welfare check at an apartment on Ross Road, where they found the young girl confined to a small closet, weighing only 29 pounds. Authorities say she had been kept in a 3-foot by 2-foot space for at least a month, with her only sustenance consisting of one corn dog and half a cup of water each day. Medical professionals later confirmed that the girl suffered from severe cerebral atrophy due to prolonged malnutrition.

The discovery was chilling, but even more disturbing was the ongoing search for Gonzales’ other daughter, Ava Marie Gonzales, who has been missing since 2017, when she was just two years old.