Austin serial killer Raul Meza facing new charge after CSAM found on his phone
Raul Meza faces new charge
Austin serial killer Raul Meza may be facing a new charge after child sexual abuse material, or CSAM, was found on his phone, a source tells FOX 7 Austin's Meredith Aldis.
AUSTIN, Texas - Austin serial killer Raul Meza is facing a new felony charge after child sexual abuse material, or CSAM, was found on his phone.
Meza is currently spending life in prison without parole after pleading guilty in 2024 to capital murder in the 2019 death of Gloria Lofton and murder in the 2023 death of Jesse Frage.
Suspected Austin serial killer Raul Meza to spend the rest of his life in prison
Austin suspected serial killer Raul Meza Jr. will spend the rest of his life in prison after accepting a plea deal.
The Latest:
The Austin Police Department says that on June 24, its Child Exploitation Unit's detectives charged Meza with one count of third-degree felony possession of child pornography.
The charge comes from a review of a cellphone seized in a separate criminal investigation by the Pflugerville Police Department in 2023.
A court-authorized forensic examination of the phone uncovered multiple images that met Texas's legal definition of CSAM, APD says.
Further investigation and review by CEU detectives led to enough probable cause to charge Meza.
The backstory:
Meza’s rap sheet dates back to 1975 when he shot and wounded a man in a robbery.
Meza served jail time for killing 8-year-old Kendra Page in 1982. As a part of a plea deal, Meza was sentenced to 30 years in prison, but was released on parole in 1993 after serving 11 years.
He was arrested on a parole violation in 1994, and spent the next 20 years in and out of prison.
In May 2023, Meza called the Austin Police Department and admitted to killing Gloria Lofton in 2019 and killing his roommate Jesse Fraga in 2023. He was arrested in north Austin five days after he confessed to the murders over the phone to Austin police.
Raul Meza pleads guilty to capital murder
Austin suspected serial killer Raul Meza Jr. will spend the rest of his life in prison after accepting a plea deal.
Austin police also said at the time he gave details about a double murder he is believed to have committed in San Antonio. However, agencies later said they couldn’t find any to match the timeline Meza gave for potential murders committed there.
Investigators have previously said Meza may be responsible for a dozen murders, but last August, APD said they were no longer investigating Meza in connection with any cold cases.
The Source: Information in this report comes from reporting by FOX 7 Austin's Meredith Aldis and previous reporting by FOX 7 Austin