HOLLYWOOD, CA (Hollywood Today) 4/12/09 — Police have arrested a Sunday-school teacher in the killing of California 8-year-old Sandra Cantu, authorities said early Saturday. Melissa Huckaby was arrested on charges of kidnapping and murder, according to Tracy, California police.
Few residents of the mobile home park said they know Melissa Huckaby, the 28-year-old Sunday school teacher who lives across the street from Sandra and was arrested early Saturday in connection with the girl’s death.
Everyone had assumed it was a man who killed Sandra, neighbors said. It was impossible to imagine that a woman in their own community, whose daughter played with their children, could be responsible for such a violent crime.
Huckaby was “just another person in this trailer park, with a little girl who wanted to play with another little girl,” said Angie Chavez, Sandra’s aunt.
Her husband, Joe Chavez, echoed the thoughts of many of Sandra’s friends and neighbors: “How can we trust people again?”
It wasn’t just residents of the mobile home park who were distraught, but parents and others from all over Tracy, many of whom drove to the neighborhood where Sandra lived to console one another. Families came from as far away as Santa Clara to offer support on Saturday.
Tracy mom Belinda Cabrera said Sandra’s death and the arrest of Huckaby have made her especially worried for her own 4-year-old son, who often plays at friends’ homes and goes to day care. (LBN)