On March 12, 2023, a quadruple fatal shooting occurred at an apartment in the 3500 block of Villaverde Avenue in Dallas. Officers arriving about 7:10 p.m. found four people dead of gunshot wounds: 18-year-old Juan Diego Cruz, 24-year-old Lupe Cruz, 20-year-old Jasmine Borjas Santos, and 21-year-old Fatima Guadalupe Alvarado Fuentes. An infant in the apartment was uninjured and later placed with Child Protective Services after a hospital evaluation.

Investigators identified 18-year-old Artemio Maldonado and 20-year-old Azucena Sanchez as suspects. Sanchez was the ex-girlfriend of Juan Diego Cruz and had been involved in a contentious custody dispute over their child; family members said Maldonado and Sanchez had made prior threats against Juan. Surveillance showed a vehicle matching Maldonado’s leaving the complex around 1:11 a.m., and police later found the car about a mile away at 9:30 p.m., apprehending the two as they approached it and recovering a handgun between the driver’s seat and the door. Maldonado admitted to shooting all four victims, saying they had entered through a back bedroom window and a confrontation ensued; Sanchez said they went in to steal money and were confronted. Both were charged with capital murder and booked into the Dallas County Jail.

Anyone with information about the apartment, the victims, or the events that night is asked to come forward.