Homicide suspect at large

By RAY QUIROGA
publisher@sbnewspaper.com

The primary suspect in a 2013 double murder was recently added to the Cameron County Sheriff’s Top 10 Most Wanted list.

According to the Cameron County Sheriff’s Office (CCSO), on Jun. 20, 2013, the deceased bodies of Homero de Los Santos and Lorena Gonzalez were discovered at a residence at the 2300 block of Hwy. 281 in the vicinity of El Ranchito/La Paloma, just outside the San Benito city limits.

According to the CCSO, both victims had been pummeled to death by the suspected murderer, later identified as Mario Gonzalez San Roman. An investigation revealed that the suspect immediately fled to Mexico after allegedly committing the murders and hasn’t been seen since.

According to investigators, the suspect threatened to one day return to the States, but it is believed that he is still hiding in Mexico, said Cameron County Sheriff Eric Garza.

According to a July 14, 2013 NEWS story, the San Benito man accused of the double homicide was indicted by a Cameron County Grand Jury, yet he remained at large at the time of the indictment, believed to have already fled into Mexico.

Gonzalez, 46, was indicted on Wednesday, July 10, 2013 for allegedly killing his estranged wife, Lorena Gonzalez, 42, and her friend, Homero De Los Santos, 38, at a residence located on the 23000 block of Military Highway 281 in the vicinity of El Ranchito and La Paloma.

“He’s still at large,” said Cameron County Sheriff Omar Lucio in 2013. “Basically, what they (the Cameron County District Attorney’s Office) did was they took the information to the Grand Jury, and the Grand Jury decided to indict him on two counts.”

Lucio, who past in 2022, believed that Gonzalez, initially identified by authorities as Mario Gonzalez San Roman, was hiding in Mexico where he has family. “They seem to think that he’s in Mexico,” said Lucio. “That’s mostly the information that we have. He has a brother in Mexico.”

The bodies of Lorena Gonzalez and De Los Santos were discovered in a bathtub at the aforementioned residence on June 20. Lorena Gonzalez appeared to have been stabbed numerous times while De Los Santos reportedly suffered blunt-force head trauma, authorities have reported.

The CCSO was notified after neighbors reported a foul odor emitting from the La Paloma resident.
Gonzalez is 5’7, 160 lbs., and has salt and pepper hair. Sheriff’s investigators say that anyone who may have seen Gonzalez or has information as to his whereabouts, should contact the CCSO at (956) 554-6700 or Cameron County Crime Stoppers at (956) 350-5551.

Tipsters may remain anonymous. Callers with information leading to the location and/or apprehension of the suspect are eligible for a reward, read a CCSO statement.

All parties are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.