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Richard Paul Rodriguez, right, faces a murder charge in the death of Christi Lynn Romero, left. (Photos from Holbrook Police Department)
An Arizona man is accused of breaking into the mobile home trailer he shared with his girlfriend, killing her and driving her car across state lines to his parents’ house in California, where authorities discovered her body in the trunk days after she filed a protection order against him.
Richard Paul Rodriguez, 34, faces a murder charge in the death of Christi Lynn Romero, 54, authorities said.
The case was uncovered on Monday morning. Holbrook police responded to a reported missing person at a mobile home at 201 East Iowa Space #2 in Holbrook. The door appeared to have been kicked in, Romero was not in the trailer, and her car was not outside, authorities said.
Police began searching for Rodriguez, who had been served an order of protection and was removed from the home on Nov. 2, police said.
“We got called by the Navajo County constable in this district to help serve an order of protection and remove Richard from the residence if he was there,” said Holbrook Police Chief Nathan Christensen, local Arizona station KTVK/KPHO reported.
Authorities learned he had been staying at a local mission to house the homeless, but on Monday, staff there told police he hadn’t been there for several days, authorities said in a news release.
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Police released a nationwide “Attempt to Locate” bulletin for Romero, Rodriguez and her vehicle.
Cellphone location data tracked him along Interstate 10, heading to California, officials said. Gas station surveillance video showed Rodriguez in her car but no Romero in the car, Christensen said.
Rodriguez eventually showed up at his parents’ home in Huntington Beach. Rodriguez’s dad reportedly called 911 on Monday when his son told him not to open the trunk, Romero’s family reportedly said.
“Officers responded, something led them to check the vehicle, and that’s where the body was discovered,” said Jessica Cuchilla with the Huntington Beach Police Department.
Romero’s family was crushed.
“She was a loving and caring woman. Her grandkids and kids love her,” they said in a statement. “We will never be the same. He took the heart of our family.”
Christensen said Rodriguez, who’s in custody in California, could also face additional charges, including kidnapping, burglary, aggravated assault, and vehicle theft. Authorities said they were working with the Huntington Beach Police Department and notified the FBI of the active case.
