The FBI is offering a reward of up to $50,000 for information leading to the arrest and conviction of a man accused of gunning down a mother and daughter in Irving more than two years ago, in a killing that a 5-year-old boy witnessed firsthand. Hector Vicente Paguada Paguada has been on the run since the January 2024 shooting, and investigators believe he is now hiding out in Honduras.
According to a news release from the FBI, Paguada Paguada allegedly shot and killed two adult female victims on January 19, 2024, doing so in front of the 5-year-old son of one of the victims. The victims were identified as 55-year-old Juana Medina Rodriguez and her 23-year-old daughter, Nayeli Bolaños Medina, according to FOX 4 News. Rodriguez was pronounced dead at the scene, while her daughter died after being taken to a hospital.
The shooting happened at approximately 8:50 p.m. at the Park Springs Apartments in the 2000 block of West Irving Boulevard. Police documents indicate Paguada Paguada was in a relationship with Bolaños Medina, and that her 5-year-old son later told investigators Paguada Paguada shot both women following a dispute over a car title she had bought from him, the station's report notes.
A Manhunt That Stretched Across Borders
Investigators say Paguada Paguada fled the United States after the murders with help from others, according to the FBI release announced by FBI Dallas Special Agent in Charge R. Joseph Rothrock. Within weeks of the shooting, Irving police arrested three alleged accomplices: Nicolle Martinez Tome, 34, and Paguada Paguada's own sister, Yudi Mabel Paguada Ruiz, 30, both on evidence tampering charges, along with Yeferi Josue Aguilera Hernandez, 32, on a charge of hindering apprehension, per the same account from CBS News Texas.
A fourth accomplice, Escarleth Mejia, was arrested in April 2024 and charged with hindering apprehension of a known felon for allegedly helping Paguada Paguada flee the area after the killings, FOX 4 News reported. Mejia was booked into the Irving City Jail following her arrest.
Early in the investigation, police had initially identified the suspect under the alias Hector Matute before public records and warrants formally established his name as Hector Vicente Paguada Paguada. The FBI now lists several aliases he is known to have used, including Hector Antonio Matute, Alejandro De Jesus Muniz Cruz, and Hector Martinez.
Capital Murder Charge and a Federal Fugitive Warrant
Dallas County issued a state arrest warrant for Paguada Paguada on January 24, 2024, after he was charged with capital murder. Under Texas Penal Code Section 19.03(a)(7)(A), committing multiple murders during the same criminal transaction elevates a charge to capital murder, which carries a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment without parole or the death penalty, according to FindLaw.
On February 29, 2024, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Texas issued a federal arrest warrant charging him with Unlawful Flight to Avoid Prosecution. That federal charge, authorized under Title 18 U.S.C. Section 1073, is what allows FBI agents to assist local authorities in tracking state felons across state and international lines, according to the U.S. Department of Justice. It's why the FBI Dallas Field Office is now involved alongside Irving police in the search.
The FBI's wanted notice describes Paguada Paguada as 5 feet 6 inches tall, weighing 160 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes, and lists his date of birth as July 29, 1988, in Honduras. He speaks both English and Spanish and should be considered armed and dangerous, per the bureau.
What It Would Take to Bring Him Back
If Paguada Paguada is located in Honduras, returning him to face charges in Texas would hinge on a long-standing bilateral extradition treaty between the United States and Honduras dating back to 1909, along with subsequent legal provisions covering fugitives charged with major violent crimes, according to the Department of Justice. Such international extraditions require close coordination between U.S. federal prosecutors and Honduran law enforcement authorities.
The manhunt has also stirred local tension in Irving before. In February 2024, Irving police had to publicly clarify that a barricaded suspect in a separate, unrelated aggravated assault investigation on West Irving Boulevard was not Paguada Paguada, after officers entered a unit during a standoff and speculation spread locally, per CBS News.
Anyone with information about Hector Vicente Paguada Paguada's whereabouts is asked to contact the FBI at 1-800-CALL-FBI (1-800-225-5324) or submit a tip online at tips.fbi.gov. The FBI says all information can remain anonymous and confidentiality is guaranteed. Wanted posters are available in both English and Spanish through the bureau's website.
