A Texas real estate agent, world traveler, and mother of a teenage son is now behind bars, charged with capital murder in the brutal 2012 stabbing death of her close friend, a cold case that remained unsolved for more than a decade until a single droplet of blood and cutting-edge genetic genealogy led police to her door.
Myra Velasquez, 42, was arrested last week after investigators matched her DNA to blood found on a TV stand in the apartment of Irasema Chavez, who was stabbed more than 100 times in her Arlington home in January 2012, authorities announced at a news conference Thursday.
The arrest marks the end of a 14-year wait for justice for Chavez’s family, who had watched the case go cold despite a thorough initial investigation and a composite sketch generated from the blood sample in 2016.
“You cannot outrun your past, especially a past as allegedly dark as the one belonging to a Texas real estate agent named Myra Velasquez,” said Chris Stewart, host of Law & Crime’s “On the Case,” in a segment detailing the case.
Velasquez, who appeared to be living a life of luxury on social media with vacations to Paris and Jamaica, now faces a capital murder charge that could put her behind bars for life without parole.
The case began on January 14, 2012, when family members went to check on Chavez, 33, after she failed to show up for work. They found her dead inside her apartment, the victim of a frenzied attack.
“The Tarrant County Medical Examiner later determined that she was stabbed more than 100 times,” police said during the news conference.
Surveillance video from the night of the murder shows a shadowy figure in sweats walking up the stairs to Chavez’s apartment. The person appears to try the door, then waits for about a minute before the door opens and they enter.
There were no signs of forced entry, leading detectives to believe Chavez knew her killer.
A TV was reported missing from the apartment, but the most critical piece of evidence was a single droplet of fresh blood found on the TV stand in the bedroom.
“The crime lab determined that the blood sample did not come from the victim and belonged to an unidentified Hispanic female,” police said.
Detectives uploaded the DNA profile into CODIS, the national DNA database, but got no match. In 2016, they sent the sample to Parabon NanoLabs, which created a phenotype profile of the suspect—a woman believed to be in her 20s.
Still, the case remained cold until November 2024, when Arlington police asked the FBI to use investigative genetic genealogy on the sample.
“Our homicide detective got a call from the FBI letting him know that the IGG process had identified a potential suspect,” police said.
That suspect was Myra Velasquez, who had been a close friend of Chavez and lived just a few miles from the crime scene in 2012.
With this new lead, detectives began surveillance on Velasquez. In May 2025, they obtained a sample of her DNA from discarded trash—specifically, plastic forks she used at a restaurant.
“The lab determined that the DNA was a match to the droplet of blood recovered from the crime scene,” police said.
A warrant was issued, and Velasquez was arrested during a traffic stop last week.
“Miss Velasquez was interviewed, and in that interview, we learned information that will be helpful in that process,” police said, declining to disclose details of what she said.
Police also recovered Chavez’s cell phone, which they say provided “very valuable information” about the relationship between the two women.
“They were friends, and Ms. Velasquez had been in the apartment before,” police said.
At this point, no official motive has been released, but the sheer brutality of the attack—more than 100 stab wounds—suggests a deep-seated rage, according to forensic experts.
“You have to think about a motivation,” said Joseph Scott Morgan, a professor of applied forensics at Jacksonville State University and a longtime death investigator. “Overkill like that often points to an intimate relationship, not necessarily sexual, but a connection where jealousy or anger is driving the violence.”
The surveillance video, the lack of forced entry, and the DNA evidence all point to Velasquez as the killer, police say.
“The strong lead we had was a droplet of fresh blood recovered from a TV bedroom TV stand inside the apartment,” police said. “That blood did not come from the victim.”
The case is a testament to the power of forensic genetic genealogy, which uses public DNA databases to build family trees and identify suspects.
“It all springs from an industry where everybody wants to find out their ancestry,” Morgan explained. “Even if you haven’t sent in a sample, a distant relative might have. That relative points a finger back at you.”
In this case, the FBI’s IGG team was able to zero in on Velasquez after the DNA sample was run through commercial databases.
“In 2024, Arlington police asked the FBI to help take on the case and test the blood sample using genetic genealogy,” police said.
The technology has been used to solve numerous cold cases across the country, including the 2001 murder of Leslie Prayer in Maryland.
“There are so many cold cases that people will never know about,” Stewart noted. “But this tool is working really well in taking what seemed impossible and cracking it.”
For Chavez’s family, the arrest brings a mix of relief and sorrow.
“Telling the family—that’s why we do this work,” the lead detective said, becoming emotional during the news conference. “They were very grateful. It was emotional.
But everybody who touches a case like this feels elation when it’s solved and feels the pain for the family.”
Velasquez, who appeared in court this week, is being held without bond. Her attorney has not commented publicly.
The suspect’s social media paints a picture of a woman who seemed to have it all: a successful career in real estate, a loving family, and trips around the world.
“She appears to have lived a life that so many would envy for the past 14 years,” Stewart said. “In 2013, we have pictures showing her pregnant on a beach. Now she has a teenage son.”
But that life is now over. Velasquez faces a capital murder charge, and prosecutors are expected to seek a life sentence.
“You cannot outrun your past,” Stewart said. “Life for her is never going to be the same.”
The case remains under investigation, and police say they are not looking for any other suspects.
“At this time, we are not looking at anyone else in connection to this murder,” police said.
The arrest of Myra Velasquez is a stark reminder that even the most cold-blooded killers can be brought to justice, no matter how long they hide.
“I think you can see it in her eyes when you look at this mugshot,” Stewart said. “Are those tears of someone wrongly accused? Or are they the tears of a killer who could no longer outrun the consequences?”
For now, Velasquez sits in a county jail, charged with capital murder in a case that has shocked the Dallas-Fort Worth community.
The victim’s family, who waited 14 years for answers, finally have a suspect in custody.
“We were able to obtain some information from her in the interview which will help in her prosecution,” police said.
The case is set to proceed through the courts, with a trial likely months away.
“We’ll see what happens next,” Stewart said. “Myra Velasquez is innocent unless proven guilty.”
But for the family of Irasema Chavez, the arrest is a long-awaited step toward closure.
“They were very grateful,” the detective said. “It was emotional. But that’s why we do this work.”
