A frantic search for a spouse ended in a fatal shooting Monday night in Dallas after a man allegedly rammed a car and opened fire on its occupant. Anthony Rios Rivera, 32, is currently in custody at the Dallas County Jail, facing murder charges following the death of 28-year-old Erick Artea Lerma.
The incident unfolded around 7:40 p.m. on March 31 in the 4400 block of the eastbound Dallas Fort Worth Service Road.
According to police reports, Rivera was driving through a parking lot near Interstate 30 looking for his wife. Investigators say that once he spotted her inside a vehicle with Lerma, Rivera used his own car to intentionally ram them, sparking a chain-reaction crash with other parked vehicles.
Witnesses and court documents describe a violent escalation immediately following the collision. Police state that Rivera stepped out of his car, pulled a firearm, and fired a barrage of bullets into the vehicle where Lerma was sitting.
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An arrest affidavit details the brutality of the attack, noting that Lerma was struck 13 times in the chest.
In the immediate aftermath, Rivera’s wife reportedly confronted him at the scene. Investigators say Rivera then took her car keys and fled the area in the vehicle she had originally driven to the location. Dallas Fire-Rescue arrived shortly after, but Lerma was pronounced dead at the scene.
Rivera did not stay on the run for long. According to the affidavit, he eventually returned to his home, where officers were waiting to take him into custody. He surrendered without further incident.
During his interview with detectives, Rivera attempted to claim self-defense, telling investigators he believed he saw Lerma holding a gun before he started shooting.
However, police records clarify that no weapon was found on Lerma or anywhere inside his vehicle. Rivera remains held in Dallas County as the legal process moves forward.
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