Houston Man Sentenced to Life Without Parole for Kidnapping and Murder of Ex-Girlfriend

A Houston man, Daniel Chacon, 32, was sentenced to life in prison without parole after being convicted of capital murder for the kidnapping and fatal shooting of his ex-girlfriend, 38-year-old Maira Gutierrez, a Pasadena mother of four, Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg announced late Tuesday, December 17, 2024.

“This administration has made domestic violence crimes a priority since the beginning precisely because of horrible cases like this,” Ogg said. “This was a mother who was doing everything right to get away from a violent and controlling partner but still lost her life, and the only just result is that he spends every day of the rest of his life in prison.”

The murder occurred on October 3, 2022, about a month after the couple ended their relationship. Gutierrez regularly visited her 6-month-old child, who was living with Chacon and his new girlfriend. On the morning of the murder, Gutierrez was visiting the baby at Chacon’s apartment on Red Bluff Road when Chacon, armed with a handgun, ambushed her in the parking lot.

Witnesses reported hearing Gutierrez scream for help as Chacon forced her into the backseat of her silver SUV at gunpoint before driving away. Pasadena police responded, and an emergency ping on Gutierrez’s phone led to its discovery 13 miles away on the side of the 610 Loop.

Gutierrez’s vehicle was later found at an industrial site in southeast Houston, where officers discovered her body with a fatal gunshot wound to the head.

Chacon fled to Mexico but eventually surrendered to authorities. After a six-day trial, a Harris County jury found him guilty of capital murder, resulting in the automatic life sentence without parole.

Assistant District Attorneys Jennifer Dupont and Mary McFaden, both from the Domestic Violence Division, prosecuted the case. “This was always about Daniel Chacon trying to control Maira,” Dupont said. McFaden added that Chacon’s escalating history of violence against women culminated in this tragedy.

Chacon will never be eligible for parole.