Police have arrested a Texas man for allegedly trying to cover up his father’s murder — but they have not charged him with the actual killing itself, Us Weekly confirmed.
Daniel Sebastian Ordonez was arrested on Thursday, April 9, on charges of tampering with or fabricating physical evidence and failing to report human remains.
A statement from police claims that the 31-year-old’s father, Daniel Antonio Ordonez, was the subject of a missing persons report filed by a relative who lives in a different town.
The relative claimed that they had come across some “strange” and unusual activity on the 54-year-old father’s phone and smart watch.
Police said that the family member who called them had access to the victim’s phone and smart watch data.
Investigators tracked the victim’s found and keys to a rental property he owned. The phone, along with the victim’s keys, were buried beneath fresh soil at the bottom of a flowerpot.
Police also found one of the victim’s vehicles at the rear of the property with what they claim is evidence of a bullet hole on the driver side rear window.
At the victim’s primary home, where he lived with his wife and his 31-year-old son, they found a large black trash bag that appeared to be leaking blood. An officer allegedly poked a small hole in the bag and determined that there was a corpse inside.
Detectives also noted seeing drag marks in blood on the ground near where the body has been dumped.
Forensics teams managed to find evidence both in and out of the home of blood that had been cleaned up.
The father was shot once in the head, police said.
Cops later obtained evidence showing the son used his dad’s ATM card to purchase cleaning supplies, duct tape, gloves, a shovel, concrete, and a “mummy” style sleeping bag.
Ordonez has denied having any involvement in his father’s death and further claimed to not know who could have shot him. It was unclear if police had had a chance to speak to the victim’s wife.
The son remains in police custody without bond as police continue to investigate. He has not been charged with his father’s murder. Information on his lawyer, assuming he has one, was unavailable Monday, April 13.
Diana Escobedo, who lives next door, told News4 she is sad to hear Daniel Sebastian Ordonez may have been involved in the crime, especially since she says Daniel Antonio Ordonez always spoke so fondly of his own kids.
