The search is on for a missing Texas boy and his murder-suspect father after the child’s mother was found dead. The daughter of Zuleika Lopez reportedly found her dead inside her home on Tuesday night. Nowhere to be found were the victim’s son, Ian Aguilar, 10, and the boy’s father, Juan Aguilar-Cano, 38.

Police in the Dallas area city of Wilmer only confirmed that the murder victim was a relative with custody of the child, according to KDFW. Law enforcement sources told KXAS, that Aguilar-Cano is Ian’s father and is wanted for killing the mother.

No one had apparently heard from the mother since Friday, according to KDFW.

“It was initially reported as a welfare concern and after some investigation we found that a homicide had been committed. Immediately, our concern was for the 10-year-old boy and his safety,” Wilmer Police Chief Victor Kemp reportedly said.

Police are looking for Ian Aguilar, 10, and his murder-suspect father, Juan Aguilar-Cano, after the child’s sister found the mother, Zuleika Lopez, dead at home. (Images: National Center for Missing and Exploited Children)

Police were called after Lopez’s daughter found her body. A local woman described officers emerging from the scene visibly shaken, KXAS reported.

“When she got inside she found her and that’s when she started screaming and started going crazy,” she said. “I know that the cops work in situations where they find brutal murders, and then for the cops to come outside and be crying — it’s something really horrifying that they saw.”