Authorities in Texas are urgently searching for a suspect accused of fatally shooting a Dallas father in a tragic incident witnessed by the man’s young son and pregnant wife. The victim is said to have bravely attempted to shield his family during a terrifying home invasion carried out by the suspect and two accomplices.

In the harrowing account shared by Elizabel Cardenas, the wife of the victim, Juvenal Antero, she recalled her husband’s heartbreaking final words as he lay fatally wounded: “I don’t want to die.” This devastating event unfolded in December 2023 at their apartment, with Cardenas recounting these moments to local station ABC affiliate WFAA. Antero, in his last statements, reportedly said, “They hit me. They hit me. I’m going to die.”

The Dallas Police Department has identified Arnold Sustaita Zapata, 26, as a suspect in this capital murder case and announced his pursuit on Sunday. As of now, two other suspects involved in the crime remain unidentified and are still at large, police reports indicate.

Detective Michael Christian expressed the gravity of the situation, emphasizing the sheer horror of such a crime occurring in the perceived safety of one’s home. Speaking to local Fox affiliate KDFW, he stated, “It’s troubling because this happened inside his own residence in front of his wife and kid. I need help identifying and bringing justice to this family.”

The police detailed in a press release that officers were dispatched to the family’s apartment in the Pleasant Grove area on the city’s east side around 2:40 p.m. on December 30, 2023. Upon arrival, they discovered Antero had been shot as he valiantly attempted to protect his family by confronting the intruders with his own firearm.

In vivid recounts to the media following the incident, Cardenas described the terrifying sequence of events. She mentioned that the family had been inside their apartment when a knock on the door led her to confront two men, setting off the tragic chain of events.

— Dallas Police Dept (@DallasPD) October 26, 2025

Police officials said in a press release that officers were dispatched to Antero and Cardenas’ Dallas apartment around 2:40 p.m. on Dec. 30, 2023, in the Pleasant Grove area on the city’s east side. Cops arrived to find Antero shot after two men tried barging into the home. Antero had tried to defend his family with his own gun.

Cardenas described the ordeal to multiple media outlets after the shooting. She said the family was inside the apartment when she heard a knock, so she went to answer the door and encountered two men.

“They were asking for help,” Cardenas told WFAA in January 2024. “They were wanting a plunger.”

As Cardenas went to answer the door, she said, the men forced their way inside, with one of them allegedly being armed.

“He points the gun at my son,” Cardenas told NBC affiliate KXAS.

“My husband jumped in front of my son and took the bullet for my son,” she recounted. “My husband was able to fire back, defend our family, defend my son.”

Antero was transported to the hospital by first responders, where he died. Cardenas said the shooting happened while she was pregnant with their second child.

“I’ve suffered two miscarriages,” Cardenas told WFAA.

“We’ve been trying for these couple of years. It finally happened,” she said. “I have to welcome this new baby into the world without a father.”

Speaking to KXAS in January 2024, Cardenas told the outlet, “My son keeps asking me, when is my dad going to be alive again? Things that no child is supposed to witness or supposed to ask. I don’t wish this on anyone.”