Bakersfield, United States - August 08, 2025 08/08/2025 10:00 am GMT-0700 BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – Nearly a week after the death of 8-year-old Genesis Mata, demonstrators gathered outside the Kern County Department of Human Services demanding an investigation into Child Protective Services. Family friends and community members accused CPS of failing Genesis and other children, saying multiple reports of suspected abuse were made, but no action was taken. Protesters are now calling for the caseworkers involved to be investigated. Genesis Mata was killed the night of Aug. 1, according to statements from the suspects. Police discovered her body the next evening after responding to a welfare check at a La Quinta Inn in Bakersfield just after 6:30 p.m. on Aug. 2. Officers said they had been told a young girl might be unresponsive in a room. They forced their way into the bathroom, where they found her in a bathtub with significant trauma. Investigators determined she had been abandoned. Two people — 31-year-old Ray Mata Jr. of Bakersfield and 27-year-old Graciela Bustamonte of Delano — were arrested and booked on charges of murder, torture, and multiple counts of child abuse. According to police reports and court records, Genesis suffered severe burns from scalding water, extensive scarring to her back consistent with whipping, and trauma to her hands. Bustamonte told investigators she slammed Genesis's hands in a door frame while Mata held them, causing the loss of her fingernails. She also admitted she watched as Mata struck the girl in the abdomen on the night of Aug. 1, causing her to collapse and lose consciousness. Neither suspect sought medical help, and Genesis died that night. The investigation also revealed abuse of an 11-year-old boy, identified in court documents only as J. Mata. He was found with bruising across his body, whip marks on his back, and burn scars consistent with contact from cigarettes and a heated lighter. Bustamonte told police the children were horribly whipped with wires and hangers.