#Mom found dead in Mexico was allegedly lured by sex offender’s kidnap ploy

A Texas mother found dead in Mexico with all of her teeth removed was lured there by a registered sex offender who said he kidnapped her boyfriend, according to a report.

Braulio Trevino Martinez, a 39-year-old registered sex offender in Texas, was arrested Tuesday in the Mexican border town of Matamoros in the brutal murder of 23-year-old mom of two Lizbeth Flores, a law enforcement official told the Daily Mail.

Martinez allegedly lured Flores, whose body was found tortured in Matamoros on Aug. 11, to rob her. Flores and her family reportedly knew Martinez, although the extent of the relationship is unclear.

Martinez, who served a four-year Texas prison stint after being convicted in 2006 of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl, told Flores she needed to cross the border to pay a ransom in the kidnapping of her boyfriend, a source close to the investigation said.

Flores left Brownsville on Aug. 9 for Matamoros, where she was presumably headed to meet her boyfriend, her mother, Maria Rubio, told Telemundo.

Rubio reported her missing to Brownsville police the following day when she did not return.

Mexican authorities told KRGV Flores died of blunt force trauma to the head after being hit with a large rock found at the gruesome murder scene. Her scalp was missing and all of her teeth had been removed.

Her body was found lying face-up, with just a bra, pants and shoes on, according to photos from the crime scene detailed by the Daily Mail. She was discovered in a grass field next to a construction site in an area notorious for robberies.

Flores’ mother is trying to bring her daughter’s body back to Texas with the help of a local funeral home that’s awaiting clearance from US Customs and Border Protection, according to the report.

Flores’ sister, Carmen, is also trying to raise money to help pay for funeral expenses, according to a Facebook post featuring Flores’ two children, ages 4 and 8 months.

In a separate post early Friday, Carmen Flores shared a photo with her sister, saying she was “sorry” she couldn’t save her.

“Only god knows how much I tried,” Carmen Flores wrote. “My heart literally shatters at the thought of never seeing you again.”

FBI officials are also involved in the ongoing investigation, KRGV reports.