Man Arrested in Connection with Deaths of Quitman Toddlers

QUITMAN � A second person has been arrested in connection with the death of two East Texas toddlers. KETK reports Thomas Liles, 19, of Quitman, turned himself into the Quitman Police Department Wednesday morning. Liles was detained and arrested for two counts of injury to a child. Bond was set at $1,000,000, $500,000 for each count. Liles recently waived his arraignment on a charge of tampering with evidence. Daphne Elizabeth McDaniels, 24, was arrested Monday and charged with the murder of her daughters, Gabriella Guerrero, 3, and Natalye Price, 1. According to the autopsy, the girls died from blunt force trauma to the head. McDaniels now lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

Authorities were first alerted to the situation July 24, when a neighbor called Quitman police to report two children who were not breathing and would not wake up. Multiple witnesses told officers that Liles was seen running from the Dogwood Villa Apartments where the two deaths occurred. They also saw the man throw a “large item” into a dumpster near the building. The items in question were consistent with having come from the children’s apartment, said police.