REMEMBERING ANAIAH
Anaiah Rose Marie Quintana was just 23 months old. She was born on February 26, 2021, in Alamosa, Colorado, to Armando Quintana and Dreamishia Guerrero. She was the little sister of Uriah, Lillyanna and Destiny, and she loved being surrounded by her brothers, sisters and cousins. Anaiah was a happy little girl with beautiful blue eyes and a smile her family says could light up an entire room. Her mother remembered the twinkle in Anaiah's eyes and the way her smile could melt your heart. She was loving and affectionate. When Anaiah saw someone upset or crying, she would come over, give them a big hug and snuggle with them. She loved to dance. She loved watching Cocomelon and Little Angel. She loved spaghetti and cheese, Snickers, Kit Kats, Reese's and especially suckers. And she had a mischievous little habit that her family remembered with love: Anaiah liked sneaking sips of Pepsi from her daddy. Those are the things that deserve to live beside Anaiah's name. Not only what happened to her. Not only the investigation. Not only the courtroom. Anaiah was the toddler with the enormous smile. The little girl who danced. The baby sister who played with her siblings and cousins. The daughter who loved being with her daddy. The little girl who noticed when someone was sad and wanted to make them feel better. Her name was Anaiah Rose Marie Quintana. And before the world knew her because of the way she died, her family knew her because of the joy she brought into their lives.
ANAIAH'S STORY
On January 31, 2023, Anaiah was being cared for by babysitter Denise Cordova in Conejos County, Colorado. That afternoon, Cordova contacted Anaiah's mother and told her that something had happened to her daughter. When Anaiah's mother arrived, she found Cordova on a couch holding Anaiah. Her little girl did not appear to be breathing. Her mother immediately called 911. Cordova told first responders that she had taken Anaiah for a walk in her stroller. According to Cordova, Anaiah became excited when she saw sheep in a nearby field, stood up in the stroller, the safety straps broke, and Anaiah fell face-first onto the ground. Cordova said Anaiah repeatedly lost consciousness after the fall. She also told authorities that she had repeatedly hit Anaiah on the back trying to keep her awake and said that could explain marks found on the toddler. But Anaiah's injuries immediately raised serious concerns. She had significant bruising on her face and forehead and inside both ears. More devastatingly, Anaiah had suffered severe trauma to her brain. Doctors at Children's Hospital determined that the injuries they were seeing were not consistent with an accidental fall from a stroller. Multiple doctors documented concerns for child abuse and non-accidental trauma. Anaiah was critically injured. She was airlifted to Children's Hospital in Colorado Springs, where doctors fought to save her. Her parents stayed beside their little girl. Her mother later remembered those days as one piece of devastating news after another. They talked to Anaiah. They told her they loved her. They stayed with their daughter. But the damage to Anaiah's brain was too severe. At 6:15 a.m. on February 3, 2023, Anaiah Rose Marie Quintana died. She was just 23 months old. Her second birthday was only 23 days away.
THE INVESTIGATION
Investigators began examining Cordova's account of what happened. They found problems almost immediately. Cordova had described the route she said she and Anaiah took during their walk. Investigators discovered that a home along that route had a motion-activated camera pointed toward the road. The camera captured passing traffic during the relevant period. It did not capture Cordova walking down the road with Anaiah in the stroller. Investigators also examined the stroller itself.
Cordova had claimed its safety straps broke. But authorities reported that the straps did not appear frayed as they might if they had suddenly snapped. Instead, investigators believed they appeared to have been recently cut with a sharp object. There were also inconsistencies in Cordova's timeline and text messages. Most importantly, the medical evidence contradicted her explanation. Doctors who examined Anaiah concluded that the extensive injuries to her brain were inconsistent with the stroller fall Cordova described and were instead consistent with serious non accidental traumatic brain injury caused by child abuse. The Conejos County Sheriff's Office requested assistance from the Colorado Bureau of Investigation. Together, investigators reconstructed what had happened and built the criminal case surrounding Anaiah's death. On February 24, 2023, Denise Cordova was arrested. She initially faced charges that included first degree murder and child abuse.
JUSTICE FOR ANAIAH
Anaiah's case continued through the Colorado court system for nearly two years. Then, in January 2025, the criminal case reached its conclusion. Denise Cordova was convicted of second degree murder in connection with Anaiah's death. Cordova later appeared before District Judge Kimberly Cortez for sentencing. The court sentenced her to: 36 years in the Colorado Department of Corrections. The district attorney described Anaiah as one of the community's most vulnerable and innocent members and said the case had caused immeasurable grief for her family and community. For Anaiah's parents, the investigation also meant that the truth about what happened to their daughter had been uncovered. When the investigators responsible for the case were publicly honored in February 2025, Anaiah's mother thanked them for the way they had treated her daughter and her family. She said that if Anaiah could have been there, she would have given them a big hug. That sounds remarkably like the Anaiah her family described. The little girl who saw someone hurting and responded with a hug.
Denise Cordova
Relationship to Anaiah: Babysitter/caregiver
Conviction: Second degree murder
Sentence: 36 years in the Colorado Department of Corrections
FOREVER REMEMBERED
Anaiah Rose Marie Quintana was 23 months old. She was only weeks away from turning two. There should have been a second birthday. Then a third. There should have been preschool. Kindergarten. School pictures. Dance parties in the living room. More cartoons. More spaghetti. More suckers. And countless more stolen sips of her daddy's Pepsi. There should have been years for those beautiful blue eyes to see the world. There should have been decades for that enormous smile to change as the little girl behind it grew. There should have been enough time for Anaiah's brothers and sisters to watch their baby sister grow up beside them. Instead, her family was forced to say goodbye before she even reached her second birthday. But Anaiah left behind something that the violence inflicted upon her cannot take away. Her family remembers exactly who she was. She was happy.She was loving. She danced.She smiled. She played with her siblings and cousins. And when someone was hurting, little Anaiah wanted to hug them. Her name was Anaiah Quintana. Abuse Angels remembers Anaiah Rose Marie Quintana the beautiful blue eyed little girl with the enormous smile, the infectious dance moves, and a heart already big enough to recognize when someone needed a hug. We remember Anaiah. We speak her name.
And Anaiah will not be forgotten.
