Background: The Texas Roadhouse restaurant in Amarillo, Texas (Google Maps). Inset (left): Mario Alberto Rodriquez (Potter County Sheriff”s Office). Inset (right): Marisela Mendoza (Bunch-Roberts Funeral Home).
An Oklahoma man who shot his girlfriend in the parking lot of a Texas Roadhouse in Texas and then fled with his two children has been sentenced.
Mario Alberto Rodriquez, aged 33, chose to plead guilty instead of facing trial for the murder of 23-year-old Marisela Mendoza in 2022. Previously reported by Law&Crime, both Rodriquez and Mendoza were Oklahoma residents who traveled separately to the Texas Roadhouse in Amarillo on April 30, 2022. They parked their vehicles and began arguing vigorously, which turned violent when Rodriquez drew a firearm and shot Mendoza multiple times.
Rodriquez then fled to another town with his two little girls, ages 5 and 8 years old, in the car with him.
Mendoza was found by first responders with life-threatening gunshot wounds and brought to the hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries.
Once Rodriquez was identified as the perpetrator and it was discovered he had his two young daughters in his car, an Amber Alert was issued. This alert was later retracted after he was captured in Hereford, Texas. Law&Crime verified with Amarillo police that the children were unharmed and are now with family.
According to local CBS affiliate KFDA, after being detained in Texas, Rodriquez was temporarily moved to Texas County, Oklahoma, in February to address a warrant for child neglect and domestic abuse. These charges were dropped, and he was returned to Texas in May.
In July 2022, a Potter County grand jury indicted Rodriquez for murder. He was originally slated to stand trial in early 2026, but he submitted a guilty plea on Monday in exchange for a 60-year prison sentence.
Alberto Luperon contributed to this story.
