ID's See No Evil: What happened to Sandra Cantu?

After coming home from school, 9-year-old Sandra Cantu went outside to play with her friends, but on March 27, 2009, she did not come back home.

An investigation was launched into the case after her parents reported Cantu missing and several people were put under the lens. However, everything started to fall into place after her body was found a few days later inside a suitcase.

The chilling murder story will be uncovered in Investigation Discovery's latest series, See No Evil. The episode, titled "Someone You Trust," is slated to air on January 11th at 9PM.

Here's the synopsis of the episode:

In 2009 in Tracy, Calif., a little girl vanishes after playing at a friend's house, leaving her family desperate for answers; with no leads and few clues, investigators must rely on surveillance footage to piece together the horrifying truth.

Before you watch the episode, here are some chilling facts to know about the case

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The backstory, what happened to Sandra Cantu, and more

Sandra Cantu came from school at around 4 PM on March 27, 2009 and left home to check if her friends would play with her. An hour had passed, and she had not returned. Her mother was not worried because coming home late was normal for her sometimes.

It was 7PM and she still did not return and finally her mother decided to raise the alarm. She called up the police and an investigation into the case was launched.

When Cantu left the house play, her mother informed the police that she was donning a pink Hello Kitty top and black tights. The area was thoroughly searched by the cops. There were no signs of Sandra anywhere.

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CCTV footage turned out to be the key in the case

Thankfully, Sandra's grandparents had installed CCTV outside the house. It was this camera that helped the investigation immensely.

Sandra's final footage, caught on camera, was of her skipping away to her neighbour's house. The footage was not strong evidence at the time, but it later became a tool to zero in on the perpetrator.

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A pedophile, Sandra's biological father, a school teacher were questioned

To get to the bottom of the case, no stone was left unturned. A pedophile neighbor who once kissed Sandra on the lips was put under the lens of the investigators. The man did admit to the police that he liked younger girls, but was soon released with a warning.

Sandra's biological father, Daniel, was also questioned, but as he had a reasonable alibi, he was ruled out.

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The neighbour's tip

The case of Sandra Cantu was challenging to look into. A $30,000 prize was offered, but as some coincidences began to occur, the detectives began to make some progress in solving the case.

Melissa Huckaby, a school teacher and also a neighbor, texted Cantu's mother on the day Sandra disappeared,

"Tell the police that I had something stolen today around 4 p.m. I don't know if that makes a difference or not".

While the text was ignored before but when the same woman also happened to have found a note that said “Cantu locked in stolin suitcase. Thrown in the water on Bacchetti Road and Whitehall Road. Witness," rang the bell.

The final lead was provided by a retired U.S. Marine and his wife when they claimed to have seen Huckaby at the irrigation pond on the day Sandra disappeared.

Armed with other evidence and video footage, the police arrested Huckaby.

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Huckaby was sentenced to life in prison

Although Huckaby pleaded not guilty, she could not run away from the evidence that the police had gotten hold of. On April 10, 2009, Huckaby was arrested and charged with the murder of Cantu.

Media reports revealed Sandra had been drugged and sexually assaulted before she was thrown into a pond packed inside a suitcase.