US woman found dead in Mexico, family says; 7 missing children safe

INDIANAPOLIS – An Indiana woman who disappeared in February while traveling in Mexico with her seven children has been found dead, and Mexican authorities have taken the children's father into custody, her family said.

Makala Pendley, 30, and her children were reported missing from Indianapolis on Feb. 23, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children. On June 9, family members confirmed to the Indianapolis Star, part of the USA TODAY Network, that she was found dead in Mexico.

Pendley's seven children, who were missing along with her, have been found safe in Mexico, and their father, Joseph Jude Butler Jr., was taken into custody, a family member told the Indianapolis Star. The family also said Pendley was pregnant.

In a Facebook live briefing on June 9, Jorge Luis Llaven Abarca, the Chiapas state prosecutor, announced that a suspect had been arrested after authorities opened an investigation into the death of Pendley. The suspect, only identified as Joseph "N," was the victim's partner and the main suspect in the investigation, according to Llaven Abarca.

The state prosecutor also confirmed that Pendley's seven children had been found and were placed under protection. He added that the children were in "good health" and authorities were working with the U.S. Embassy to transfer the children's custody to family members.

"In the coming hours, his criminal responsibility will be determined, and he may be brought before justice. We will seek the maximum sentence of 100 years for this perpetrator of femicide," Llaven Abarca said.

Missing Indiana woman found dead in southern Mexico

Llaven Abarca previously said in a Facebook live briefing on June 8 that a woman's body had been discovered in the municipality of Zinacantán in the Elambó Bajo area.

Pendley's sister, Maurica Lambert, previously told the Indianapolis Star that her family had been working with Mexican law enforcement to identify a body found near a village of Zinacantán, Chiapas, in southern Mexico. The body was identified as Pendley on June 9.

During the June 8 briefing, Llaven Abarca said initial findings indicated the woman's cause of death was traumatic brain injury caused by blunt-force trauma. Investigators determined the woman’s body had been left there for between eight and 12 hours, he said.

He initially did not release the woman's identity, though he said she appeared to be a foreign national from the United States. U.S. officials were confirming her identity, he said at the time.

In a June 8 social media post, Llaven Abarca said his office was committed to "zero impunity for femicidal violence.”

On June 9, the Chiapas Herald, a local newspaper, reported that state officials confirmed Pendley was the woman killed. During the June 9 briefing, Llaven Abarca identified the woman as Pendley and confirmed she was from Indianapolis.

The Indianapolis Metro Police Department told USA TODAY the family was located in Mexico last month, and the children were taken into custody by Mexican authorities, who later released them back to Pendley. In a June 9 email, IMPD said its investigators had not been notified yet about the death of anyone in the case.

Mexican authorities say suspect has a criminal record

During the June 9 briefing, Llaven Abarca said it was confirmed in coordination with U.S. authorities that the suspect has a criminal record, including an active arrest warrant in Alaska, and was the subject of a search alert by Indianapolis police for Pendley and the seven children.

He added that the suspect was previously detained for other crimes, such as assault, robbery, fraud, illegal possession of weapons, intimidation to cause bodily harm, and rape, among others.

According to police reports, on Feb. 25, an Indiana Department of Child Services family case manager reported Pendley missing. When reached by phone, the department said it does not comment on specific cases.

Lambert said Pendley and the father of her children had a "toxic, on-and-off relationship." Court papers reviewed by USA TODAY show the couple had opened paternity cases relating to their children.

Public records also show that Pendley previously lived in Polk County, Tennessee, and her family said she had lived in Alaska at one point.

The children's father, identified in court records as Joseph Butler, could not immediately be reached for comment. USA TODAY has reached out to the U.S. State Department for more information.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact their local law enforcement agency or Indianapolis police at 317-327-3811.

Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected] and follow her on X @nataliealund.