Autopsy finds teen may have been burned, sexually assaulted

SANTA FE, N.M. (AP) — Court documents related to the homicide case of a 13-year-old New Mexico boy who endured years of abuse reveal he may have also been sexually assaulted and burned. The Santa Fe New Mexican reported Friday that, according to newly released search warrants, an autopsy of Jeremiah Valencia's body details that portions of it had possibly been burned. A grand jury last week indicted the boy's stepfather, Thomas Wayne Ferguson, on first-degree murder and other charges. The boy's mother, Tracy Ann Pena, and Ferguson's 19-year-old son, Jordan Nunez, are also charged. Authorities say Ferguson of repeatedly torturing the teen and beating him to death last November. His body was found buried off a rural highway near Nambe. Detectives got permission this week to search additional property owned by the suspects. ___ Information from: The Santa Fe New Mexican, http://www.sfnewmexican.com