HARRIS COUNTY, Texas — A woman who was found dead on Easter Sunday in north Harris County has been identified, according to Sheriff Ed Gonzalez.
RELATED: Woman's body found with signs of trauma along Cypress Creek in north Harris County, sheriff says
Gonzalez said the victim is 28-year-old Phalyssia Sanders. He said she was shot to death.
Editor's note: The videos attached to this article are from the initial reports when Sanders' body was found on Sunday, April 17, 2022.
Her body was found along Cypress Creek in the 18400 block of Mossforest Drive, near the intersection of Shady Stream Drive. The area is just north of FM 1960 and I-45.
People who were fishing in the area saw the body and reported it to officials. Officials said they believe the body had likely been there for weeks.
A day after the discovery, Gonzalez took to Twitter to give an update on the case.
He said Sanders had been listed as a missing person with the Houston Police Department since April 9.
According to Gonzalez, the death of Sanders is related to the murder of Saymo Pieternelle, who was killed on April 15 in the 16300 block of Ella Boulevard.
The suspect in both Sanders' death and Pieternelle's death has been identified as Francisco Gonzalez.
According to the sheriff, Francisco Gonzalez confessed to both murders to family members before leaving the state. He killed himself during a police chase in Trussville, Alabama, according to Ed Gonzalez.
Ed Gonzalez said the motive for the murders is not clear, but he believes there was some sort of relationship between Sanders and Francisco Gonzalez prior to their deaths. It's also unclear what the motive was for the murder of Pieternelle but Ed Gonzalez said he believes them to be "closely related."
Ed Gonzalez said Pieternelle is not believed to have been an accomplice to Sanders' death.
The investigation is ongoing.