LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) - A man has been arrested in California for allegedly killing his father nearly two months ago in Laredo. The case has taken authorities 1,000 miles from Laredo as they continue to investigate what led them to the suspect.

On Tuesday morning, August 27, Laredo police announced the arrest of 37-year-old Santos Moreno Rodriguez, who is now at the Webb County Jail facing murder charges. The investigation began on July 6 with the discovery of 60-year-old Santos Rodriguez Montoya’s body inside a West Laredo apartment, where he was found with a gunshot wound. At the time, police released limited information and had not identified a suspect.

Joe Baeza of the Laredo Police Department explained that the primary suspect in the case was the victim’s son. “Immediately after the incident that happened on Tesoro Lane, the individual who was the main person of interest in this case wound up being the victim’s son, and he immediately fled to California,” Baeza said.

Baeza added that the argument between father and son escalated into violence. “For now, what we know in general is that there was some sort of argument that day on Tesoro Lane. The argument escalated into a violent turn, and so he shot his dad,” Baeza said.

With the help of the U.S. Marshals Fugitive Task Force in both Texas and California, authorities located and arrested Moreno Rodriguez in Visalia, California, and brought him back to Laredo. “This person fled the state and went several states across the country thinking we would just lose interest, but it wasn’t the case,” Baeza said. “We’re back at 100% solvability rates for our community in these types of homicides. The investigators did a good job.”

Baeza noted that most homicides are domestic. “Most of the time, homicides are domestic related. It’s people who are either related or well-known to the victim. In this case, it was the victim’s son who murdered him. So at this point, we’re going to allow the judicial process and his day in court to come along, and we’re working alongside the district attorney’s office to make a strong case against this person,” Baeza said.

Moreno Rodriguez remains in the Webb County Jail with a $150,000 bond.

Below is the original story:

Laredo police have made an arrest in the murder of 60-year-old Santos Rodriguez Montoya, the third murder case of the year.

Police say Santos Moreno Rodriguez, 37, shot and killed his father on July 6, 2024. After the crime, Rodriguez fled to California.

On July 16, Rodriguez was arrested in Visalia, California, thanks to cooperation between local and California US Marshals. He was brought back to Laredo Monday night, August 26.

Rodriguez is charged with murder, a first-degree felony.

LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) - The Laredo Police Department needs help finding 90-year-old Francisco Mendiola, who has been missing since Saturday, August 24, 2024.

Mendiola was last seen being dropped off in the 100 block of Salinas Avenue and was expected to cross into Nuevo Laredo.

He was wearing a brown T-shirt, blue jeans, and black shoes. Mendiola is about 5′5″ tall and weighs between 160 and 170 pounds. He is also a U.S. Veteran.

If you have any information or see Mendiola, please call the Laredo Police Department at (956) 795-2800.

LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) - A Laredo man is behind bars after a late-night convenience store robbery where he threatened the employee with a knife, police said.

Police got a call about a robbery around 2:00 a.m. on Tuesday, August 27, in the 1100 block of East Saunders Street. Officers spoke with the store worker, who said a man came in and demanded beer. According to police, the worker told him he couldn’t buy alcohol because it was after hours.

Police say the man then went behind the counter, hit the worker, and showed a knife before running away. Police found the suspect later in the 900 block of East Olive Street.

The suspect, 32-year-old Antonio Rodriguez, was arrested for aggravated robbery and assault causing injury.

LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) - CBP officers at Laredo Port of Entry encountered a man wanted in the Dallas area on an outstanding felony warrant for a sex-related offense involving a child.

The incident made Laredo Port of Entry Port Director, Albert Flores, comment on the importance of the CBP.

“These types of apprehensions illustrate the importance of CBP’s border security mission and reflect our continued commitment to keeping our communities safe,” said Flores.

CBP officers at Juarez-Lincoln Bridge referred 66-year-old bus passenger, Zeferino Gonzalez Salas, a lawful permanent U.S. resident, for secondary inspection.

During the examination, CBP officers used biometric verification and federal law enforcement databases to discover that he was the suspect of an outstanding felony arrest warrant for indecent exposure to a minor issued by the Dallas County Sheriff’s Office.

CBP officers then transported Gonzalez Salas to the Webb County jail for adjudication of the warrant.

LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) - A traffic stop on I-35 led to the discovery of 11 people hiding in a trailer last week.

The Texas Department of Public Safety says the stop happened near mile marker 13. The trailer driver, John Saiz, did not give permission for a search.

A trooper then called a U.S. Border Patrol agent to use a dog for a search. The agent found 11 people trying to hide in the trailer’s sleeping area.

All 11 were found to be in the country illegally. They were taken into custody and handed over to U.S. Border Patrol. The driver is now facing human smuggling charges.

LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) - U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers arrested three men with outstanding warrants at different ports of entry this past week.

The first arrest occurred on Wednesday at the Camino Real International Bridge in Eagle Pass, where officers referred 25-year-old Brian Anthony Rodriguez, a van passenger, to secondary inspection. Rodriguez was found to have an outstanding warrant for sexual assault of a child from Dallas County.

On the same day, officers at the Progreso International Bridge referred 75-year-old Martin De La Fuente to inspection and discovered he had an outstanding warrant for indecency with a child.

Meanwhile, at the Gateway to the Americas Bridge in Laredo, officers referred 18-year-old Angel Eduardo Rojas to inspection and found he had an outstanding warrant for smuggling undocumented people.

All three individuals were taken into law enforcement custody.

LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) - A man is facing charges for allegedly distributing fentanyl.

Court documents show that 39-year-old Rolando Soliz was seen trying to sell drugs to several people during a two-day police surveillance operation. Authorities say one of Soliz’s customers had bought fentanyl from him before and had seen large amounts of the drug in Soliz’s apartment.

Police searched properties linked to Soliz and found 10 guns. As a convicted felon, Soliz is not allowed to have firearms or ammunition.

If found guilty, Soliz could face up to 20 years in federal prison and a fine of up to $1 million

LAREDO, Tx. (KGNS) - A teenager is fighting for his life while another is arrested.

The incident happened on Saturday, Aug. 24, at around 3 p.m. when Laredo Police officers responded to Doctors Hospital emergency room on Jaime Zapata Highway where a 16-year-old was injured with a gunshot wound to the stomach.

Detectives from CAPERS division arrived at the ER and through the investigation, they discovered that the shooting happened at a home at the 500 block of El Sabinal Loop.

Police found two witnesses at the area as well as a 9 millimeter handgun.

One of the witnesses, a 16 year old was arrested after detectives learned he allegedly unintentionally shot the 16 year old victim.

He was taken to Webb County Youth Village being held on charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and unlawful carrying of a weapon.

The victim was taken to the hospital in serious condition.

LAREDO, Tex. (KGNS) - The Laredo Police department are directing traffic along the 5100 block of Hwy 359 after a trailer catches fire on Saturday morning.

No word yet what caused the fire, but police are asking the public to drive with caution in the area.

First responders were seen extinguishing the flames.

No injuries were reported at this time.