Cops crack mystery of missing teen found strangled and set on fire in California 15 years ago

The burnt human remains of a teenage girl who was strangled after she went missing 15 years ago have finally been identified by a California police department.

Marcia Thomas was just 14 when she disappeared in Reno, Nevada on September 4, 2009 and the case would sit cold for more than a decade before finally being solved.

After years of DNA analysis and investigations from detectives the Irvine Police Department on Thursday revealed what happened to her.

“Marcia’s family remains in our thoughts during this difficult time. We appreciate the agencies that have assisted in providing crucial information to support the case and the family,” Police Chief Michael Kent said in a statement.

Investigators say that Thomas was lured into a van by Zenaido Valdivia-Guzman, 23, and his brother Gabino, 30, in Santa Ana, California.

She became startled and began to scream when she spotted the younger brother sitting in the back of the vehicle.

Zenaido began assaulting the young girl, beating her around the neck and face, according to police as Gabino continued to drive. As Thomas attempted to flee the scene the younger brother grabbed her and strangled her to death.

The van was then driven to a business complex on 1800 block, Kettering Street in Irvine where the girl was thrown into a parking lot.

The Valdivia-Guzmans took Thomas’ phone, doused her with gasoline and set her alight as they quickly fled the scene of the crime, authorities said.

Her scorched remains were discovered the following day by employees arriving for work.

Homicide detectives arrived at the scene and began scouring for any clues and information on who might be behind the slaying.

More than a year after the murder, on November 5, 2010, Zenaido’s DNA was linked to the crime following a misdemeanor conviction for domestic violence the year prior.

Both brothers were arrested on November 6, 2010 at a shopping center in Santa Ana before being taken into custody.

Zenaido was convicted of first-degree murder and the special circumstance of murder in the commission of a kidnapping on November 15, 2022.  He is now serving a life sentence without the possibility of parole.

Gabino has not yet faced a judge and will be tried at an undisclosed future date.