When Jonathan’s family learned that their 12-year-old son had been cruelly murdered, they went through a horrific time.
The grisly murder and kidnapping of Jonathan Foster were featured in Investigation Discovery’s “The Interrogator: Missing on Christmas Eve” case.
What happened with Jonathan Foster? Who killed him?
Jonathan’s childhood was difficult because his parents, Richard Foster and Angela Davis, divorced when he was still a little child. For four years, Jonathan also resided in Missouri with his uncle, Glenn Scrimsher.
Due to her problems with opioids, alcohol, and other addictions, his uncle thought that Angela, his mother, was unfit to raise a child on her own.
Against the wishes of his uncle, Jonathan moved back to Texas in 2009 to live with his grandmother. He eventually moved in with his mother.
Jonathan Foster, a 12-year-old Houston resident, was kidnapped from his home and killed in 2010.
Four days later, his burned body was discovered in a ditch five miles from his home, wrapped in a carpet and bound with rope.
On Christmas Eve, he was the only resident of the flat.
The cause of death could not be determined due to the severity of the burns. The police initially believed Jonathan had escaped, but finally an Amber Alert was sent out.
Just as Angela arrived at the flat, she received a strange call; Jonathan had already gone.
Jonathan’s parents, Angela and David, initially claimed that he was with a nanny, but they eventually acknowledged that he was by himself in the flat.
Conflicting reports slowed down the investigation, and it took them until Nelson’s identification from the security tape to identify a suspect.
They made a breakthrough thanks to surveillance camera video.
The authorities identified the woman in the footage as Mona Yvette Nelson, a family friend, who was seen discarding a body from a silver pickup truck.
Who killed Jonathan Foster? Where is the killer now?
When the authorities investigated Nelson’s home and car, they discovered welding equipment and rope that matched the items used to bind Jonathan. Nelson was a former boxer and a welder.
On the day of the crime, as Jonathan’s family was frantically looking for him, a neighbour also confirmed seeing her. Nelson was detained and accused of committing a fatal homicide.
Nelson testified during her trial that Jonathan’s stepfather, David, had requested her to empty a full garbage can without telling her what was inside.
But, phone call transcripts and surveillance footage that showed David at a nearby bar during the time of the crime led to his exoneration.
Nelson received a life sentence without the possibility of parole after being proven guilty.
She declined to testify and didn’t speak up for herself until after the verdict, declaring, “I’m innocent, and I maintain my innocence. I wouldn’t harm anybody.”
Official records indicate that Nelson is now incarcerated at the Gatesville Correctional Institution.
The Fourth District Texas Court of Appeals’ three judges rejected her appeal request in 2015 after she filed it.
In order to prove her innocence, she is currently in the process of submitting a petition of habeas corpus to the State Court.
Since Jonathan’s untimely death crushed his family, his mother founded a nonprofit in his honour to aid other children in need.
Nelson’s conviction provided some solace to the community and Jonathan’s family, but the case continues to rank among the most horrible crimes in Houston history.
