Tucson woman gets life sentence for 3-year-old son’s murder

A Tucson mom convicted of fatally starving her three-year-old son and putting his body in a toy chest has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

According to NBC News in Los Angeles, 44-year-old Raquel Marcella Barrera was sentenced on July 22 to 24 additional years in prison for child abuse charges.

Reports show Barreras was found guilty of first-degree felony murder and one count of child abuse earlier this year.

Barrera pleaded guilty to four other charges in the case including abandoning or concealing a dead body plus three counts of child abuse.

NBC News reports that the three-year-old, Roman Barreras is believed to have died sometime between the spring of 2013 and 2014.

The child’s remains were found after his family was evicted from a Tucson rental unit.