US woman found dead in Mexico, family says; 7 missing children safe

An Indiana woman who disappeared earlier this year while traveling in Mexico with her seven children has been found dead, her family said, but her children are safe.

Makala Pendley, 30, and her children were reported missing from Indianapolis on Feb. 23, according to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.

Pendley's sister, Maurica Lambert, told the Indianapolis Star, part of the USA TODAY Network, that her family had been working with Mexican law enforcement to identify a body found near a village of Zinacantán, Chiapas, in southern Mexico. The body was confirmed as Pendley's on June 9.

Pendley's seven children, who were missing along with her, have been found safe in Mexico, a family member told the Indianapolis Star. It was not immediately clear where the children were found. Family also said Pendley was pregnant.

In a Facebook live briefing late June 8, Jorge Luis Llaven Abarca, the Chiapas state prosecutor, gave an update on the discovery of a woman’s body in the municipality of Zinacantán. He said they were looking for a suspect or suspects.

Llaven Abarca said initial findings indicated the woman's cause of death was traumatic brain injury caused by blunt-force trauma.

Investigators determined the woman’s body had been left there for between eight and 12 hours, Llaven Abarca said. Officials said the body was found in the Elambó Bajo area.

He didn’t release the identity of the woman, though said she appeared to be a foreign national from the United States. U.S. officials were confirming her identity, he said. On June 9, the Chiapas Herald, a local newspaper, reported state officials confirmed Pendley was the woman killed.

In a June 8 social media post, Llaven Abarca said his office was committed to "zero impunity for femicidal violence.”

The Indianapolis Metro Police Department told USA TODAY the family was located in Mexico last month, and the children were taken into custody by Mexican authorities who later released them back to Pendley. In a June 9 email, IMPD said its investigators had not been notified yet about the death of anyone in the case.

Lambert said Pendley and the father of her children had a "toxic, on-and-off relationship."

Children's parents had opened paternity cases for kids

Court papers reviewed by USA TODAY show the couple had opened paternity cases relating to their children.

The children's father, identified in court records as Joseph Butler, could not immediately be reached for comment.

According to police reports, on Feb. 25, 2026, an Indiana Department of Child Services family case manager reported Pendley missing. When reached by phone, the department said it does not comment on specific cases.

USA TODAY has reached out to the U.S. State Department for more information.

Anyone with information about the case is asked to contact their local law enforcement agency or Indianapolis police at 317-327-3811.

Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at [email protected] and follow her on X @nataliealund.