JASPER COUNTY, Texas – The man investigators say drove Theresa Balboa to the Jasper motel room where Samuel Olson was found has been charged in the case.
Dylan Walker, 27, was arrested and charged with tampering with evidence. KPRC 2 spoke with the Jasper County Jail who said Walker posted a $125,000 bond.
Walker’s mother said she is shocked her son was charged because she believes Walker did everything to help since he was the person who submitted the Crime Stoppers tips that led authorities to Olson’s body.
Court documents confirmed Walker was the one who called in the anonymous tip to Crime Stoppers. However, they also revealed Walker was not only the person who drove Balboa to Jasper, but he was the person who rented the motel room where the 5-year-old’s body was found.
According to his indictment, Walker was charged with tampering because he did “intentionally or knowingly conceal a thing, namely the corpse of Samuel Olson, with intent to impair its availability as evidence in the investigation.”
KPRC 2 legal analyst, Brian Wice said Walker is being charged as an accomplice to the crime.
“He’s charged under the law of parties, which says, ‘Share the crime, share the time,’” Wice said.
Meanwhile, 27-year-old Benjamin Rivera is also now out on bond. Rivera appeared in court Thursday, where a judge set his bond conditions, including house arrest and no contact with anyone under the age of 18.
Rivera was Balboa’s roommate and was the second person to be charged with tampering with evidence, namely Olson’s body, in connection with the case.
Balboa, the girlfriend of Olson’s father, was the first person to be charged in connection with the case. She is also charged with tampering with evidence but is expected to face more charges as the investigators continue to learn more information.
“I think police and prosecutors have done a masterful job of lining up the pieces on the Chessboard that will ultimately result in the checkmate of Theresa Balboa,” Wice said. “Specifically with Theresa Balboa being charged with either capital murder, murder or injury to a child.”
Prosecutors said the potential weapon used to kill the 5-year-old has been found, but the District Attorney’s Office did not release more information about it.
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