The Eyrie

DENTON, TX — Police in Denton are searching for a man wanted on a murder warrant after investigators say evidence points to the death of his estranged wife and his SUV was later found at a hotel in New Mexico. Interim Police Chief Tony Salas said 49-year-old Richard Pastor Perez remains missing, while 42-year-old Marjulin Daiuru Briceno Arrieta has not been found.

Investigators said surveillance video from the hotel showed a man matching Perez’s description getting out of the white 2013 Ford Escape and leaving it behind. Salas told reporters the case is now being treated as a presumed homicide, based on evidence collected during the investigation, including DNA evidence. Police have not said where Briceno Arrieta’s body may be, and the search for Perez continues across state lines.

Police say the couple met in Denton hours before she disappeared

According to Denton police, Briceno Arrieta met Perez around 6:45 p.m. Monday, Sept. 28, at his apartment in the 1900 block of North Ruddell Street. Her family later contacted police when they could not reach either of them, and relatives said they feared for her safety because Perez had reportedly abused her in the past.

Authorities said they later found Briceno Arrieta’s abandoned vehicle near Perez’s apartment. Her wallet was also recovered, according to police. Perez’s white SUV was gone, and investigators said the license plate had been switched to another number, identified as XLC1016. The vehicle’s disappearance quickly became a central clue in the search.

Police have not publicly detailed what happened after the pair met that evening, but they say the timeline places Perez and the missing woman together shortly before she vanished. That timing, along with the later vehicle movements, has become a key part of the murder investigation.

License plate readers tracked the SUV from North Texas west toward Amarillo

Investigators pieced together the path of Perez’s SUV using license plate reader records and later video evidence. Police said the vehicle was first picked up on Highway 287 in Wichita Falls around 9 p.m. Sept. 28. Another detection showed it in Donley County, southeast of Amarillo, shortly after 1 a.m. Sept. 29.

Later that night, just before 10:45 p.m., the SUV was recorded heading west on Interstate 40 west of Amarillo. Those sightings helped investigators follow the vehicle far beyond Denton County, giving them a multi-state trail to work from as the search for Perez widened. The car’s movement was one of the few concrete leads in the early stages of the case.

By the time the SUV reached New Mexico, investigators believed its route reflected an effort to get far away from North Texas. Police have not said whether Perez drove alone the entire way, only that no one else appeared with him in the hotel footage.

Hotel video in Albuquerque showed a man matching Perez leaving the vehicle

On Sept. 30, Albuquerque police located the SUV after receiving an alert connected to the license plate, Denton police said. Investigators then obtained surveillance footage from the hotel where the vehicle was found. The video showed the SUV pulling into the parking lot before a man resembling Perez got out and left it there.

Police said no other person appeared in the footage with him. That detail has become important for investigators trying to determine whether Perez traveled alone after the alleged killing and how long the SUV had been in New Mexico before it was discovered.

As of Tuesday afternoon, police had not found either Perez or Briceno Arrieta. Denton investigators said the case remains active and difficult, with leads stretching from North Texas to Albuquerque and few public answers about what happened in between.

Family members say the children had still hoped their mother was alive

Salas said investigators met with Briceno Arrieta’s family Tuesday morning and told them that evidence suggests she is dead. Among those hearing the news were her three children, who had held out hope that their mother might still return home. Family supporter Denisse Carrera, who has become an advocate for the children, said they struggled to grasp what investigators were telling them.

“They didn’t understand. They still had hope,” Carrera said. She described Briceno Arrieta as a mother who wanted a safer life for her children and said the family was now left trying to explain a devastating turn in the case. Carrera said she had expected to help reunite the children with their mother, not tell them she is not coming back.

Police have not released additional details about the family meeting, but the emotional toll has been central to the public update. Salas said Briceno Arrieta had not gone a day without seeing her children before her disappearance.

Crime Stoppers offers reward as police ask for tips on Perez’s location

Denton County Crime Stoppers is offering up to $2,000 for information that leads to Perez’s arrest. Anyone with information is being asked to call 1-800-388-TIPS or submit a tip through Denton County Crime Stoppers. Police said the search remains active and that they expect the case to take time.

Salas said the investigation is not likely to be solved overnight, calling it complicated and difficult. That assessment reflects both the missing suspect and the unanswered questions about how Briceno Arrieta died, where she may be, and how Perez moved the SUV across state lines after she vanished.

The case has now stretched from a Denton apartment complex to highways across Texas and into Albuquerque, with investigators relying on surveillance, plate-reader data and DNA evidence to build what they believe is a homicide case. For now, police say the priority is finding Perez and learning what happened to Briceno Arrieta.