Zeferina Castillo thought she'd found a romantic partner in her funeral home employee turned boyfriend. Instead, her relationship spiraled into an abusive cycle that had fatal consequences.
Castillo, 54, was shot to death inside of Our Lady of Guadalupe Church in Helotes on Jan 11, 2012. Manuel Perez Rodriguez then turned the gun on himself and committed suicide. Helotes police responded to the church for the shooting shortly after 3 p.m.
When officers arrived at 13715 Riggs Road, they could see two people dead in the main sanctuary through the church's windows. But officers had no idea who had killed them. The scene was intense as seen for the first time in exclusive video released to KENS 5.
Officer Robert Treviño was wearing a camera on his glasses. "I ain't see no shooter," Treviño said in the video, as he scours the church.
By the time officers armed with assault rifles entered the church, calls were coming into 911 about the shooting.
"We're pretty sure those were gunshots," said a church employee. "There was a couple that entered and they were a little strange."
It was Castillo and Rodriguez. Never before seen church surveillance video shows the two walking into the sanctuary before their death. They were well-dressed. There were no signs of agitation. Something changed that. It was Rodriguez.
Police reports show Rodriguez worked for Castillo from December 2009 to February 2010 at Castillo Mission Funeral Home. He quit the job because of poor co-worker relationships. However, he managed to cultivate a romantic relationship with widow, and owner of the business, Castillo.
He was initially charming, but that gave way to a darker side. Investigators describe him as verbally abusive, possessive, manipulative, and controlling.
"He didn't trust her," said Mayra Castillo. "He'd always be checking her phone and seeing where she was at."
Castillo confided her relationship to her daughter Mayra. In a police interview released to KENS 5, Mayra said Rodriguez called her mother his little doll. He claimed love for her. But Mayra said he talked bad about her mother and flirted with other women. Rodriguez convinced her mother people were out to destroy their relationship.
"They're just jealous," Castillo would tell her daughter.
Police records show he had a sexual relationship with another woman during the time he was with Castillo. That woman said he threatened to kill her if she saw anyone but him. But she said Rodriguez never struck her.
Bexar County courthouse records also reveal Rodriguez married an Amalia Peña on July 6, 2010, while he was with Castillo. In addition, he had an ex-wife and children when he started dating Castillo.
His womanizing was nothing compared to the abuse he inflicted on Castillo. Police said he choked her after church because someone told him Castillo was talking to another man. There are reports he put a gun to her head, coercing a trip to Hawaii.
Mayra said her mother disclosed a frightening secret about the escalation of the abuse she suffered from Rodriguez. He tried to kill them both in a car accident in Culberson County in December 2011.
One month later, Helotes Police discovered the couple's bodies at the altar in Our Lady of Guadalupe Church. Castillo had been shot 13 times. Rodriguez died from a gunshot wound to the head.
Castillo's cycle of domestic violence had come to a tragic finish. Her story, sadly, isn't the only one where a victim of domestic violence victim becomes a casualty of their relationship.
Domestic violence experts have compiled a path to safety. It's a chance to #Take5Stepsaway from the torment of relationship violence.
Watch KENS 5 Eyewitness News at 10 p.m. for the rest of the special report: 'Deadly Day at the Altar.'' Check back with Kens5.com for new details about Castillo's story.
