North Texas police search for man accused of killing wife

Thank you for joining us today. I am Tony Salas, Interim Chief of Police for Denton Police Department. Today I'll be providing an update on a search for Marjolaine Barciano Arrieta and Richard Pastor Perez. I'm joined today by Deputy Chief Michael Christian, Detective Luis Pazana, Detective Julian Lopez, and FBI Acting Special Agent in Charge Chris Maffey. I will share information first in English and then in Spanish. Because this investigation is ongoing, please be aware that I might not be able to answer all of your questions. but it's important that we share the latest information on our search. 42-year-old Marjolaine Barciano Arrieta was reported missing on September 28th. She was last known to be meeting her estranged husband, Richard Pastor Perez, at his apartment in the 1900 block of North Odell Street. Marjolaine's family told us that Perez was abusive during their marriage. Before she went to his apartment after work, Marjolaine let her family member know that she was going to go see him because she wanted somebody to be aware of her location in case something happened. No one has heard from Marjolaine or Perez since then. Over the past two weeks, several detectives have worked tirelessly to find them, taking steps like obtaining search warrants, canvassing areas of interest, and working with partners from the FBI Dallas office and the U.S. Marshal Task Force and other law enforcement agencies across the country. Marjolaine's vehicle was found abandoned near Perez's apartment, and his vehicle was gone. Perez bought and sold used cars, and our detectives learned that he was last known to be driving a white 2013 Ford Escape. We discovered that he had swapped the license plates out on his car. And through the flock searches, our detectives were able to see that the vehicle traveled through the panhandle towards New Mexico. The Albuquerque, New Mexico Police Department located Perez's vehicle in their city after being alerted from a license plate hit. Video evidence shows that the vehicle was arriving at a hotel on Wednesday, September 30th. A man matching Perez's description was seen exiting the vehicle alone before abandoning it in the parking lot. Before her disappearance, Marjolaine had never gone a day without seeing her children. She talked to them every day. This morning, we met with the family and shared our belief that based on the evidence gathered so far in this investigation, Marjolaine is no longer alive. While we have not found her yet, we have applied and obtained an arrest warrant for Perez for the charge of murder. We continue to follow up on all leads. We are using every resource that we can to bring Marjolaine home and bring Perez to justice, but we need the public's help. Anyone with information on their whereabouts should contact authorities immediately. Denton County Crime Stoppers is offering up to a $2,000 reward for information leading to Perez's arrest. We will not stop searching for Marjolaine. We will not stop pursuing Richard Perez until he is found. Our hope is that with the public's help, we can bring answers to the family and justice to Marjolaine. If you have information, please come forward. Your help can make a difference in this case. We also encourage anyone experiencing domestic violence to reach out to your local law enforcement agency or domestic violence advocate for assistance. Thank you.