(KNX 1070) -- A woman in Corpus Christi, Texas has received a six-year jail sentence for attempting to sell her son and two toddler daughters to settle her drug debt.
Esmeralda Garza, 29, took a plea deal, but was convicted on three felony counts for selling or purchasing a child, money laundering, and conspiring to sell or purchase a child, according to reporting by the Corpus Christi Caller Times.
Garza's arrest followed a June 2018 drug search by the Texas Department of Public Safety. Agents found Garza's seven-year-old boy while executing the search, who was allegedly sold and purchased.
"Further investigation revealed two more female children, ages 2 and 3, who were in the process of being sold," a news release stated at the time.
"Garza stated that she and her boyfriend owed drug money and gave her child (son) to (the woman) who (paid) $500 cash and to clear the (owed) debt an extra $700 when the 'custody paperwork' was signed," the report states.
Another man and woman were arrested at the time on drug charges.