A Kansas couple is facing serious charges after the remains of their adopted daughter were found buried in their backyard last fall.
Crystina Elizabeth Schroer, 50, has been charged with murder, aggravated kidnapping, child abuse/torture, theft, and desecration of a corpse among other counts.
Joseph Shane Schroer, 53, is facing child abuse/torture, liability for crimes of another, and other charges in connection to the death of 6-year-old Kennedy Schroer.
The 6-year-old victim, whose birth name was Natalie Garcia, was adopted by the couple in 2018. She was likely killed by suffocation in late 2020.
In September 2024, Rose Hill Police started an investigation after executing a search warrant on the couple’s property using cadaver dogs.
The dogs alerted investigators to several spots before locating “the decomposed remains of a human child…in a trash bag” about 23 inches deep.
The girl’s death was ruled a homicide. The Schroers were booked into jail on February 3, five months after the discovery of Natalie’s remains.
“This case was built through the development of timelines spanning more than four years, which is the primary reason for the length of the investigation,” police said.
“Natalie has always been the focus of this investigation, and we believe we can now tell her story accurately.”
