SAN ANTONIO — The mother of a 5-year-old girl who died after weeks of what county officials called "extreme abuse of torture" received a 45-year prison sentence after being convicted of child abuse.
Katrina Mendoza's prison time was capped at 45 years as part of a plea deal that required her to testify in the trial of her ex-boyfriend, Jose Ruiz, who was sentenced to life in prison last month. The convictions cap a two-year saga that began when Mercedes Losoya died at a south-side hospital in February 2022, her body swollen and covered in bruises and cuts, according to police.
So widespread were the girl's injuries that the county medical examiner said "there was no clear or obvious injury that caused the victim's death."
Katrina Mendoza and her then-boyfriend Ruiz were arrested shortly after and charged with injury to a child. Family members at the time told KENS 5 that for as long as they could remember, they always noticed injuries on Mercedes.
Ruiz's trial was an emotional affair that focused on the extensive injuries he inflicted on Mercedes. Upon taking the stand, Mendoza testified about the extreme lengths he would go to to discipline Mercedes, including placing thumbtacks on the child's body and leaving her alone for hours.
Officials said Mendoza allowed Ruiz to carry out the fatal abuse. In a statement, the Bexar County District Attorney's Office said the mother "stood by and watched as her daughter suffered."
"Now she is being held accountable too," the statement goes on to say. "Child abuse of any kind has no place in Bexar County."
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