Remains identified as missing 6-year-old Texas boy

Added: 2026-05-23

[00:00:00]For the people who knew and loved Noel Rodriguez, this has been a long and painful journey. I spoken with a foster mother who cared for him and talked about his sweet nature. Now, after 3 years, there are finally answers about where the little boy ended up. As authorities turned dirt at this home on Wisteria Drive, >> It's It's just It's sick, and it hurts my feelings. It does.

[00:00:24]>> This week, neighbors' emotions also churning.

[00:00:27]>> Like a part of me wanted him to be back there for closure, and then a part of me didn't just because it's a baby. And on Friday, the confirmation. Remains found here are those of 6-year-old Noel Rodriguez Alvarez. The medical examiner's office used dental records to confirm his identity. Those records were likely compared to Noel's mother, Cindy Rodriguez Singh, says David Middleman.

[00:00:49]>> The most direct way to answer if these remains belong to a little boy that's missing, um, is is to is to simply compare the DNA profile from those remains against the DNA profile of the mother. Middleman is CEO of Othram, a company that builds technology to help in these types of efforts. He's worked with Tarrant County on many cases and says DNA testing is the easy part. The hard part is going to be having a medical examiner consider all the different lines of evidence, um, and perform a full investigation, and then come back with a determination of cause of death and manner of death.

[00:01:24]>> Those details are yet to be revealed.

[00:01:26]>> An anthropologist says that an expert at examining skeletal remains can determine if there have been injuries, multiple injuries, if they've healed, how long they may have healed. But for neighbors in Everman, one step closer to closure for the little boy who still lives in their hearts. Now, we mentioned Cindy Rodriguez Singh is in the Tarrant County Jail. She's facing murder charges, but the case cannot go forward just yet because she has been declared incompetent to stand trial. She has been ordered to a state facility and is waiting to be moved. Just yesterday, the Tarrant County District Attorney said he expects Rodriguez sing to undergo treatment and be declared competent to stand trial for Noel's death. It's not yet clear if anyone else will face charges in the case. In the newsroom, Zahira Rahman, NBC 5.

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