Woman vanished 4 years ago, GA cops say. Now a mom and daughter charged with murder

Matilde Gonzalez vanished in 2019 and hasn’t been seen since, Georgia police say.

Four years later, three people have been arrested in connection with her disappearance, and two are charged with malice murder, according to the Cobb County Police Department.

Gonzalez was 42 when she was reported missing, according to a Sept. 11 news release from the department. She was a resident of Powder Springs, Georgia, in Cobb County, about 20 miles northwest of downtown Atlanta.

The National Missing and Unidentified Persons System says she was last seen after a physical altercation that occurred in Cobb County on Oct. 11, 2019. She is also known as Matilde Gonzalez Hernandez.

Her disappearance became a cold case without many breakthroughs, until Sept. 8, when investigators say they executed a search warrant on a Powder Springs home belonging to the three suspects.

They arrested three people and booked them in Cobb County Jail, according to inmate records.

Police said Alejandra Castro, 41, is charged with malice murder, concealing a death and cruelty to children. Samantha Vasquez, 20, who court records show is the woman’s daughter, is charged with malice murder. Abel Castro, 45, is charged with concealing a death and cruelty to children, the release says.

Divorce settlements name Vasquez as one of three children Alejandra Castro shares with an ex-husband. The two Castros are married, court records show.

Gonzalez still has not been found, police say, despite the breakthroughs. It is unclear if or how the three people may have known her.

The Paulding County Sheriff’s Office received the initial report of her disappearance, according to the release.

“Foul play was suspected from the outset, that ultimately led the case being assigned to the Cobb County Police Cold Case Unit for continued investigation,” according to the release.

A spokesperson for the Cobb County Police Department told McClatchy News a person can face a cruelty to children charge if a crime occurs in front of a child.

No attorney information is listed for any of the three suspects in Cobb County Jail records.

This story was originally published September 11, 2023 at 5:53 PM with the headline "Woman vanished 4 years ago, GA cops say. Now a mom and daughter charged with murder."