Family says woman found in barrel near Greenspoint was domestic violence victim

Man charged for murder in death of girlfriend

The woman's family says her boyfriend killed her and forced another person to help hide the body.

GREENSPOINT, Texas - On Wednesday morning, the body of 41-year-old Christelrose Angel Ramirez was found in the Greenspoint area by Houston Police.

Ramirez's family confirmed to FOX 26 that the woman was a victim of domestic violence.

Family identifies woman found in barrel

What we know:

They say that Ramirez was shot in her sleep, then placed into trash bags and moved into a barrel that was later dumped off the side of I-45 by Jesus Varela.

Houston Police have charged Varela with the crime.

He is facing a murder charge with $750,000 bail, a tampering with evidence charge with a $200,000 bail, and an assault against a family member charge with a $40,000 bail.

He is also facing a $100 bail for unlawful restraint.

Victim's family in shock

What they're saying:

Ramirez's family says that they had not heard from the woman for 11 days. Her father said he knew something was wrong when she stopped posting on Facebook.

"She didn't deserve to die the way she did because she was a beautiful young lady," father Ricardo Ramirez said. "I mean, she had her life in front of her. You know, I'm going to bring her home."

The family has set up a GoFundMe to help with funeral costs. You can find it at this link.

The family says that Christelrose Angel Ramirez and Jesus Varela had been on and off since 2019. Her father says she ‘sensed her death was soon.’

"Why? Why did you have to do this? Just let her go," Ricardo Ramirez said. "She's not going to be with you, okay? Move on. Look what's going to happen now. He’s either going to be in prison for the rest of his life, or get the needle, and I'm going for the needle."

Found over a week after murder

Timeline:

According to court documents, Varela had allegedly murdered Angel Ramirez on Dec. 1.

Just a few days later, court documents show Varela was arrested by Houston Police on Dec. 6 for the crime, after a family member alleged to have been assaulted by Varela who stated he would kill the man if he did not help hide the body.

What's next:

Varela has a court date set for Dec. 15 at 9 a.m.