'Horrific': Baby found dead in hotel dresser drawer, parents charged 1 year later
The parents of a 4-month-old baby have been charged in connection with her death, just over one year after the infant's body was found in the drawer of a hotel room on Houston's west side.
Harris County Sheriff Ed Gonzalez said on May 26, 2024, deputies responded to the business on the 7100 block of Rancho Mission Drive in the city's suburb of Bellaire, where a couple was staying with their 4-month-old child, Brooklyn Fancher. At the scene, deputies found the baby "in a dresser drawer" unresponsive and pronounced her dead.
"Horrific details," Gonzalez posted about the death this week on Facebook. "I’m glad our team has remained relentless and sought justice for this precious infant."
The sheriff's office identified the baby's parents as Jeremy Fancher, 38, and Destiny Campos, 21, and said deputies arrested the pair on murder charges in the case. Gonzalez said Campos was booked into the Harris County jail on the night of June 20.
San Angelo Police Department officers arrested Fancher on June 21. He was booked into the Tom Green County Jail, where, as of June 24, he was being held on $850,000 bond, sheriff's office records show. That jail is northwest part of the state, about an eight-hour drive from where the child was found dead.
Harris County Sheriff's Office Deputy Thomas Gilliland said Fancher was still in jail on June 24, awaiting transfer back to Harris County to face the charge.
Third arrest made in baby Brooklyn Fancher's hotel death
Marilyn Jennifer Mork, Gilliland confirmed, was Fancher's current girlfriend and was also arrested and charged with hindering apprehension. Law enforcement booked Mork into the Tom Green County Jail.
Gilliland told Paste BN that Mork was booked into the jail on $25,000 bond.
How did baby Brooklyn Fancher die?
The Harris County Institute of Forensic Science identified the baby as Brooklyn Fancher and said she died as a result of suffocation, officials confirmed.
According to an investigation, the sheriff said the parents were living at the location for more than a year.
Brooklyn, reportedly slept inside a dresser drawer, the sheriff wrote, "and that’s where she was found."
As of June 24, Harris County jail online records showed Campos remained jailed on $300,000 bond.
She was slated to appear in court on June 25 for a hearing on the case. It was not immediately known when the case's co-defendants were due before a judge.
An attorney of record was not listed online for Campos, Fancher, or Mork.
(This story was updated to add new information.)
Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for Paste BN. Reach her at nalund@usatoday.com and follow her on X @nataliealund.