Prosecutors say the case began with a 911 call and now includes 21 felony counts.

FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. — A Flagstaff mother accused of killing her toddler son and hiding his body in a hotel freezer was indicted on 21 felony counts after police found the child on May 17 inside a room near Interstate 40.

Ochra Manakaja, listed by county officials as 32, is charged with murder, child abuse and abandonment or concealment of a dead body in Coconino County. The indictment moved the case from an initial arrest into a broader felony prosecution, adding counts tied not only to the child’s death but also to alleged neglect before police arrived. Authorities have not publicly named the boy. Court documents cited by local news outlets describe him as a toddler, with ages reported as 15, 16 or 17 months.

The case surfaced just after 9:30 a.m. May 17, when police said Manakaja called 911 from a La Quinta Inn and Suites near Huntington Road and Bronco Way. She told the dispatcher her child was dead, then said, “I killed him,” before the call ended, according to court records described by investigators. Officers were sent to the hotel, where emergency responders staged nearby before police entered the room. Inside, officers found Manakaja with two older boys, ages 7 and 9. Police said those children were not hurt and were removed from the room.

Investigators said they found the toddler wrapped and placed inside a clear plastic container in a freezer. Court records said the child’s body was stiff, cold and about 26 degrees when officers discovered him. Police said the way the body was wrapped and stored suggested it had been hidden for days. Manakaja later told detectives she had wrapped the child in a blanket, plastic and tape, then sealed the freezer with duct tape because she did not want an odor to spread, according to court documents summarized by Arizona news outlets.

The police account places the first reported injury days before the hotel discovery. Manakaja allegedly told investigators she threw the toddler into a crib on April 29 because he was crying and fussy and she was frustrated. She told police he later vomited, stopped eating normally, became weak and pale, and developed a fever. Instead of taking him to a hospital, investigators said, she stayed silent because she feared getting in trouble. The child was later found unresponsive, face up, with his eyes closed, according to the account attributed to her statements.

Manakaja told police she tried to wake the child with a cold rag after finding him unresponsive, according to court records. She also said she believed he may have choked after vomiting while her older children were at school. Investigators said she remembered the day because she had a required drug or alcohol test tied to probation in a DUI case and did not want to leave the room. She told police the child had already been dead for two to three hours when she left for that appointment, then said she returned and placed him in the freezer.

For more than two weeks, police said, the toddler’s absence was explained to the older children with claims that he was at a hospital or a doctor’s office. Court documents said Manakaja described herself as the sole caretaker for all three children during the past year and told investigators that no one helped care for them or visited them. The Department of Child Safety had received a report involving the family in December 2024, according to reports citing the agency. The state agency determined the child was unsafe and obtained court authorization to take custody, but the mother’s tribe later asserted jurisdiction and assumed custody of the child.

The Coconino County Attorney’s Office announced May 22 that a grand jury had returned the indictment one day earlier. The charges include one count of first-degree felony murder, one count of second-degree murder, two counts of child abuse likely to cause death or serious physical injury, 16 counts of child abuse not likely to cause death or serious physical injury, and one count of abandonment or concealment of a dead body. Prosecutors offered condolences to those affected by the case but did not release a detailed public statement about the evidence.

Manakaja was first booked into the Coconino County Jail after her arrest on charges that included first-degree murder, child abuse and concealment of a deceased body. Earlier reports said her bond was set at $1 million cash-only and that she was barred from contacting her surviving sons. Jail and court reports also said she had a prior criminal record that included aggravated assault and DUI-related matters. The indictment does not prove guilt. It means grand jurors found probable cause for the case to proceed in Superior Court.

The medical examiner’s final ruling on the boy’s cause and manner of death had not been publicly announced in the reports reviewed for this story. Police said they were not looking for another suspect. That leaves the court case focused on Manakaja’s alleged statements, the condition of the child’s body, the timeline from April 29 to May 17, and records showing what happened before state, tribal and local authorities became involved.

The case now stands as a pending Coconino County homicide prosecution. The next major steps are expected to include arraignment proceedings, evidence disclosures and medical findings that could shape how prosecutors present the 21 felony counts.

Author note: Last updated June 17, 2026.