IRVING, Texas - Newly released court records allege the sister of a man wanted in the 2024 capital murders of two women played a key role in helping conceal evidence after the killings by arranging for the suspect's getaway vehicle to be moved.
According to an arrest warrant affidavit for Yudi Mabel Paguada-Ruiz, investigators believe she helped facilitate the removal and concealment of a Nissan Pathfinder allegedly used by her brother, Hector Vicente Paguada Paguada, after the fatal shootings of Juana Rodriguez and Nayeli Medina on Jan. 19, 2024.
Hector Paguada remains a fugitive and is believed to be in Honduras. Earlier this week, the FBI and Irving Police Department announced a reward of up to $50,000 for information leading to his arrest and conviction.
Two Women Fatally Shot
According to the affidavit, Irving police responded to Park Springs of Irving Apartments, located at 2016 W. Irving Blvd., Apartment 142, after reports of a shooting.
Officers found Rodriguez and Medina suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Rodriguez died at the scene, while Medina was transported to Parkland Hospital, where she later died.
Investigators said Medina's 5-year-old son witnessed the shootings.
Multiple witnesses reported seeing a man dressed in black fleeing the apartment after the gunfire. Several identified him as "Hector," whom they knew as Medina's boyfriend.
One witness, Celio Torres, Rodriguez's boyfriend, told investigators he was outside drinking beer with Rodriguez before she briefly went back inside the apartment. Moments later, he heard multiple gunshots.
According to the affidavit, Torres said Rodriguez ran from the apartment before the gunman fired additional shots that struck her. Torres told investigators he believed the shooter was Hector.
Investigators also interviewed the 5-year-old child, who repeatedly identified Hector as the man who killed both women.
Another neighbor, Maria Garcia, also identified Hector as the shooter after seeing him run from the apartment wearing black clothing following the gunfire.
Investigation Identified Suspect
Garcia provided investigators with a WhatsApp profile photo of Hector and information about vehicles he commonly drove, including a white work van and a Nissan Pathfinder.
Investigators determined Hector was using the name Hector Antonio Matute but later discovered through Honduran records that his true identity is Hector Vicente Paguada Paguada, born July 29, 1988.
Security video reviewed by detectives allegedly captured Hector before, during and after the shootings and showed him fleeing in a 1998 Nissan Pathfinder.
The Pathfinder was later found abandoned outside a residence on Reynolds Avenue in Dallas.
Girlfriend Told Investigators Hector Confessed
During the execution of a search warrant at the residence of Hector's girlfriend, Nicolle Martinez, investigators interviewed her about the murders.
According to the affidavit, Martinez told detectives Hector called her the night of the killings crying and apologized "for what he did" and for the situation he had placed her and their children in.
Martinez later told investigators Hector admitted he had killed two women that night.
Investigators also recovered evidence from Martinez's cellphone, including Google Maps searches related to the murder scene and the location where the Pathfinder was later abandoned.
The affidavit further alleges Martinez exchanged WhatsApp messages with Hector and another individual discussing deleting message histories to eliminate evidence connected to the case.
Sister Allegedly Coordinated Removal of Vehicle
The affidavit states investigators later interviewed Karen Yulissa Zuniga Castillo, who told detectives she was contacted by Yudi Mabel Paguada-Ruiz, Hector's sister, shortly after the murders.
According to Castillo, Yudi asked her to move the Pathfinder from a residence in Dallas and allegedly offered her $100 to do so.
Castillo told investigators that after picking up the SUV, she called Yudi for instructions. Yudi then handed the phone to Hector, who instructed Castillo to contact Nicolle Martinez for directions on where to leave the vehicle.
Instead of taking the Pathfinder to Martinez's workplace as requested, Castillo said she left it on Reynolds Avenue because she knew surveillance cameras monitored the area.
Castillo told investigators she believed she was completing a work-related favor and said she did not learn about the murders until the following day, when she met Martinez to collect payment.
Investigators said Castillo's cellphone data corroborated her account.
Cellphone records also allegedly placed Hector's phone near a Royse City residence identified as Yudi's home following the murders.
According to the affidavit, investigators believe Yudi knowingly helped arrange for the Pathfinder to be hidden in an effort to impair its discovery and destroy evidence connected to the double homicide.
Authorities allege Yudi acted as the primary contact between Hector and Castillo, facilitating communication and coordinating the movement of the vehicle after the killings.
The investigation remains ongoing.
