Tuesday, February 07, 2012

Local law enforcement officers have been trying to understand how a Valley Center man, charged with murder, lived off life-insurance policies for nearly a decade.

Prosecutors charged Daniel Perez, 52, with murder in connection to Patricia Hughes’ death in January. She died in June of 2003 in what was initially ruled an accidental drowning.

But now investigators said her death was no accident, and that Perez killed Hughes for money. And she may not be the only victim.

The bizarre chain of events began in 2001, in South Dakota. A plane crash killed Mona Griffith, a friend of Perez. Her obituary lists his alias, Lou Castro, as her surviving brother. But a relative told KAKE news the two were not siblings.

The National Transportation Safety Board ruled the crash an accident. An investigator said officials investigate whether carbon monoxide poisoning plays a factor in any plane crash. But authorities found the wreckage nearly 6 weeks later, too late to test the victims’ blood.

The report found the heater in the cabin malfunctioned a few weeks before the crash, but had since been fixed. The NTSB said inspectors were unable to determine whether the heater had been tampered with, because of the damage. When Griffith died, she left a $700,000 life-insurance policy to a mutual friend, Patricia Hughes. Court documents show Hughes and Perez, along with another woman, moved to Valley Center. Hughes drowned in a pool on the property in 2003. An autopsy found she suffered a head injury and bleeding on the brain. Hughes left a $1.2 million dollar life-insurance policy to Brian Hughes, her husband. The money he received when into an account controlled by a friend, Jennifer Hutson and another woman who lived on the Valley Center property. Brian Hughes died in 2006 after a car fell on top of him in South Dakota.

Investigators told KAKE News Perez was not at the scene during Brian Hughes death. Authorities said they do not have a reason to believe his death was anything but accidental.

Brian Hughes left his $500,000 life-insurance policy to Hutson, and not his surviving daughter.

Hutson later died in a car crash Sept. 21, 2008 in Butler County. The 46-year-old was driving east on 21st street, but crossed the center-line and hit a gravel truck head-on.

“The line of sight really bothered me because if there wasn't any medical condition, or distraction,” said Craig Murphy, former Butler County Sheriff. “I’m trying to put it together, what could have gone wrong.”

Murphy said investigators at one point seriously considered Hutson's death a suicide, but ruled it out.

“This one is not making sense to me,” Murphy said.

The driver of the gravel truck lived just a quarter-mile north of Hutson's Valley Center home. Neighbors said Hutson lived in a cluster of three homes, a compound led by Perez.

David Quring, Hutson’s husband, still lives in the home. He said he can’t talk about his wife’s accident or what he believes until the investigation is complete.

A neighbor, who doesn't want to be identified, tells KAKE news she warned Hutson to stay away from Perez. She said she predicted Hutson’s death.

“I told her something really bad is going to happen to you,” the neighbor said. She believes Hutson's death was 'no accident.’

Neighbors knew Perez as Lou Castro, a man who always had lots of money, hosted huge parties and bought expensive cars.

Gene Gray now lives in Perez' home. He said you can see the words “Angel’s Landing” scratched in the concrete.

“It's been surreal for us to learn each day what has transpired,” Gray said. “What Perez had done for several years, decades really, and to know that it all took place here."