HOOVER, Ala. — A 30-year-old Hoover woman has been charged with murder after a 70-year-old woman was found unresponsive in a community swimming pool Sept. 3, authorities said.
Hoover police responded at about 9:32 p.m. to the 2200 block of Little Valley Road after receiving a 911 call about a person in distress in the pool. First responders attempted lifesaving measures, but the woman was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Jefferson County Coroner/Medical Examiner’s Office identified the victim as Terry Lynn Walker-Zuniga, 70, of Hoover. The coroner’s office said Walker-Zuniga was pronounced dead at 10:06 p.m. Sept. 3. Her death is being investigated as a homicide.
Police identified Anastasia Tsefia Sudarsana, 30, of Hoover, as a person of interest after detectives located her near the scene. Investigators determined that Sudarsana and Walker-Zuniga were acquaintances, police said.
“Evidence showed a physical struggle occurred just before the victim’s death,” Hoover police said in a news release.
Authorities presented the case to the Jefferson County District Attorney’s Office, which issued a murder warrant for Sudarsana. She was booked into the Hoover City Jail before being transferred to the Jefferson County Jail, where she was being held without bond, according to police and news reports.
During court testimony reported by AL.com, prosecutors said the confrontation involved a missing cellphone. The report said Walker-Zuniga was sitting in a chair when she was pushed into the pool and fatally beaten. Those allegations have not been proven in court.
The official cause and manner of Walker-Zuniga’s death were being determined by the Jefferson County Coroner/Medical Examiner’s Office. Police have not released additional details about the relationship between Walker-Zuniga and Sudarsana.