Virginia Gonzales: Mum locks 7-year-old daughter in cupboard for whole month, feeds her one corndog per day
CONTENT WARNING: Child abuse
A mother has been jailed after she locked her young daughter in a tiny cupboard with extremely limited access to food and water and kept her there for over a month.
The girl’s ordeal was uncovered after police were called to a home in Travis County, Texas, to complete a welfare check in April 2025.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.At the Ross Road apartment, officers made a terrible discovery. They found a severely malnourished seven-year-old girl locked in a cupboard.
The girl weighed just 13kg, almost 10kg below the expected weight of an average, physically healthy child of her age.
The closet space she was held in was only about half a square metre big. Each day, the girl was fed one corn dog and only given half a cup of water to drink.
Her 33-year-old mother, Virginia Gonzales, was arrested at the scene and later pleaded guilty to two counts of injury to a child with intend to cause serious bodily injury.
According to an affidavit reviewed by CBS Austin, the seven-year-old was assessed by doctors at Dell Children’s Medical Centre, where it was determined she had suffered moderate to severe cerebral atrophy from prolonged malnutrition.
When police searched the apartment, they found six other children aged between 2 and 14. They were all physically healthy, and the home was stocked with food.
Gonzales was handed a 25-year imprisonment sentence.
Police are still searching for another one of Gonzales’ children, who has been missing since December 2017.
The investigation into the disappearance of Ava Maria Gonzales, who was just two-years-old when she vanished, had no major updates for years.
Austin police have said her case remains open, but confirmed that no charges have been filed against anyone, including the toddler’s mother.
“We are actively working the case which includes searches to help us determine Ava’s whereabouts,” police said.
The local district attorney’s office said they hope Gonzales waives her right to appeal her sentence.
“We hope that by Ms Gonzales agreeing she is guilty, accepting 25 years of incarceration, and waiving her right to appeal it is the first step to the victim’s road to recovery,” they said.
“No child should ever have to go through what the victim did. We will continue to work with APD to seek justice for the missing baby.”
