Volunteers searching for missing Denton mother Marjulin Daiuru Briceño Arrieta say they found her wallet along Highway 380 on October 18, nearly three weeks after she disappeared.
Private investigator Alfonso Solis told FOX 4 that the group turned its findings over to law enforcement.
“So this is the breakthrough,” Solis said, describing the discovery as the search group’s first clue in three weeks.
The volunteers also found another item but declined to identify it, the station reported. Solis said the discoveries helped narrow the search area. Denton police told the station on October 18 that they had no updates to share.
Murder warrant predates discovery
Briceño Arrieta, 42, has three children. Police believe she is dead, but investigators have not found her body or her estranged husband, Richard Pastor Perez.
As The Dallas Express previously reported, detectives obtained a murder warrant for Perez, 49. The warrant predates the search group’s reported wallet discovery.
Denton police announced the warrant in an October 13 release and said FBI Dallas was assisting with the search.
Briceño Arrieta met Perez around 6:45 p.m. September 28 at his apartment in the 1900 block of North Ruddell Street, police said. Her family contacted police after relatives could not reach either person.
Investigators found her car near the apartment and traced Perez’s white 2013 Ford Escape through the Texas Panhandle using license plate readers, police said.
Albuquerque police later located the SUV. September 30 hotel footage showed a man matching Perez’s description leaving the vehicle, with no one else accompanying him, according to the department.
A fundraiser organized by Denisse Carrera seeks $10,000 for housing, utilities and other basic needs for the children, who relied on their mother’s income.
Reward for information
Denton County Crime Stoppers offers up to $2,000 for information leading to Perez’s arrest, police said. Anyone with information about his whereabouts can call 1-800-388-TIPS (8477) or submit an anonymous tip through Crime Stoppers.
