Tiffany Thomas, a 38-year-old woman, has been sentenced to a decade in prison for her role in the death of her 7-year-old adopted son, Troy Koehler. Thomas pleaded guilty to injury to a child in February. Her husband, Jemaine Thomas, 45, admitted to the murder of the young boy in the summer of 2022 and was sentenced to 50 years in prison in July, according to the Harris County District Attorney’s Office.
On July 28, 2022, law enforcement officers from the Harris County Sheriff’s Office responded to a missing child report at a residence on Rosegate Drive. The missing child, Troy, was later discovered dead in a washing machine. The grim discovery was made in the house’s garage and utility room, where the washing machine was located.
The search for Troy involved the use of drones and dogs and ended when a deputy found the boy’s body at the bottom of the washing machine tub. Tiffany Thomas claimed she last saw her son when he was put to bed before 9 p.m. the previous night. Jemaine Thomas told investigators he last saw the boy between 7:30 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. the previous evening and only realized his son was missing around 4 a.m. when he woke up for work.
Upon finding the child’s body, an investigator attempted to assess if the child was breathing. Jemaine Thomas reportedly pushed the investigator aside, reached into the washing machine, and pulled out the child’s body. Deputies immediately began performing CPR on the boy.
The child’s body showed signs of distress. His arms and legs were warm, but his torso was cold. Blood was found around his nose, and a large bump was visible on his forehead. The boy’s clothes were damp, and there was a smell of urine. His pants were pulled down to his knees, revealing bruises on his upper legs. Authorities believe the washing machine was not turned on while the boy was inside due to the presence of urine and visible blood at the base of the tub.
A forensic examination of Troy’s body revealed he had suffered from asphyxiation, possible drowning, and both old and new blunt force trauma, indicating inflicted trauma. The findings, along with the preliminary investigation by the sheriff’s office, led authorities to rule the death a homicide.
Tiffany Thomas claimed that Jemaine Thomas texted her around 1 a.m. that morning, stating Troy was missing and the front door was open. She said she remembered locking the doors before leaving for work around 6:30 p.m. the previous evening. She also claimed she tried to contact Jemaine Thomas, but he didn’t respond.
Jemaine Thomas later confessed to physically punishing the child on July 24, 2022. A review of the parents’ cellphone records revealed a text thread where the parents expressed deep contempt for the victim. Tiffany Thomas allegedly threatened to put Troy in the stove and turn it on, while Jemaine Thomas allegedly threatened to kill the boy.
The Harris County District Attorney’s Office recalled that Troy would have been a fifth grader this year. A statement from Troy’s former first-grade teacher, Sheryl Reed, was read in court, expressing the loss of Troy’s potential future.