The Murder of Diamond Alvarez

 

Diamond Alvarez was brutally murdered in Houston, Texas on January 11th, 2022. The young girl was only 16 years old at the time of her death.Days later, Diamond's boyfriend, 17-year-old Frank Deleon Jr., was arrested and charged with her murder. 

Frank Deleon Jr.

Diamond left her family's home that evening with the family dog. Her family members thought she was simply taking the dog for a walk, however she also made plans to meet up with Deleon at a nearby park. Diamond's family began to worry around 9:30 PM when they noticed that the dog had returned home without her. 

They then began to search for her throughout their neighborhood. While searching, Diamond's brother reportedly found her in a nearby field. She had been shot 22 times in the back.

The Houston Police Department immediately began to search for a suspect. Throughout the investigation, it was revealed that Deleon had texted Diamond and asked her to meet up with him that evening. It was also revealed that Diamond had recently learned that Deleon had another girlfriend, and she wanted to confront him about it. It is believed that at some point during that meet up, Deleon shot Diamond multiple times before fleeing the scene.

It took investigators a few days to gather evidence before they finally arrested Deleon on January 17th. At his first court appearance, the judge set his bond at $250,000. Less than 48 hours later, the bond was posted, and Deleon was released from jail. 

Many locals were shocked by his release, and fear that he is a danger to the community. However, his bail was set relatively high. The average bail for a person charged with murder is reportedly around $50,000 (source). Deleon's bail was set much higher than that amount, but he was still able to be released. 

Thousands subsequently signed a petition on Change.org to revoke Deleon's bond. The petition's description states, in part, "when the suspect Frank DeLeon was arrested, detectives stated he was found packing up to flee the city/state or country." Diamond's family feared that this would impact their ability to get justice for Diamond. 

Deleon was eventually placed back behind bars. In October 2023, he accepted a plea deal in the case. In exchange for pleading guilty to murder, Deleon was sentenced to 45 years in prison. He remains incarcerated today.

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Sources:
ABC 13
KHOU 11
Law and Crime