Murder charges filed in Salinas-based child abuse case.

Murder and torture charges have been filed against a former Salinas couple accused of killing two children, ages 3 and 6, and the ongoing abuse of a 9-year-old girl.

Tami Joy Huntsman, 39, and her reputed 17-year-old boyfriend, Gonzalo Curiel, have been charged with the double murder of Delylah and Shaun Tara, who were Huntsman’s niece and nephew, as well as the torture of a 9-year-old girl, believed to be the children’s eldest sibling.

Curiel will be charged as an adult on all counts. Huntsman could face the death penalty, but Curiel, as a minor, will not.

As part of the child abuse, the couple is accused of conspiring together to commit the crime with "another person or persons whose identity is unknown," according to the complaint.

The abuse inflicted on the 9-year-old girl here in the county is noted as them not providing her with proper clothing, food or water, restraining her while repeatedly striking and kicking her which resulted in numerous broken bones as well as refusing to provide proper medical care for her injuries.

The arraignment likely will not be held this week as the couple has yet to be transported to Monterey County Jail from Plumas County, where they are currently jailed. The 9-year-old was found locked in a vehicle in Plumas County, setting off the chain of events that led to the children’s bodies being found in a storage unit in Redding.

According to Monterey County court records, the abuse of the three children began on Dec. 13, 2014 and was ongoing until the children died from the “ongoing physical abuse.” The murders are said to have occurred on Nov. 27, according to court records.

Authorities and neighbors say the couple was last seen leaving their East Salinas home on Thanksgiving weekend with some children. It remains unclear if Delylah and Shaun were among the children seen leaving the home.

Huntsman rented a storage unit in Redding on Dec. 4 and the children’s bodies were found there Dec. 13 stuffed inside a plastic container inside the storage unit.

It is unknown at the moment if either defendant has retained counsel.

The grisly crime has also haunted Salinas police officers, who have started a fundraising campaign to help with funeral costs and the future of the surviving girl.