Resolved case
Convicted
911 Available
Court Records
Midland, Texas
•
May 11, 2023
•
Ex-girlfriend
intimate partner violence
homicide
domestic-abuse-history
body-concealment
plea-agreement
community-protest
texas
multi-agency-search
How to use this case file
Readers often arrive looking for the victim name, the case, the person charged, or the location. This page is meant to help you understand the memorial story, the documented timeline, and the public record available so far in one place.
Browse the full case archive, explore the warning signs index, see the cross-case timeline, or find domestic violence support resources.
Victim summary
This summary layer helps readers understand the person, the known case posture, and the documentary shape of the file before moving into the fuller reporting.
Case snapshot
- Victim: Madeline Pantoja
- Age: 20
- Gender: Female
- Race / ethnicity: L
- Relationship: Ex-girlfriend
- Offender: Mario Juan Chacon Jr
Location and dates
- City: Midland
- County: Midland
- State: Texas
- Incident date: May 11, 2023
- Date of death: May 11, 2023
Case status and outcome
This section summarizes the documented court posture and procedural outcome reflected in the public record.
Status
- Case status: Sentenced
- Conviction status: Convicted
- Source strength: 9 linked sources
Charges and sentencing
Charges: Murder, Tampering With Evidence
Sentence: Chacon avoided a jury trial by pleading guilty on February 20, 2026, in the 142nd District Court to charges of first-degree murder and tampering with physical evidence. Under the terms of the plea agreement, he received a 35-year sentence for murder and a concurrent 20-year sentence for tampering, with parole eligibility after serving 17.5 years.
Court monitoring
This section reflects core court-tracking details only when they are available in the public case record.
Warning signs and risk factors
These markers help readers connect a single case to broader patterns of coercive control, escalating abuse, and missed intervention points.
Warning signs
Risk factors
Recent breakup or pending separation
Access to firearms
Available records
These are the documentary layers currently reflected in the public case file.
911 audio
Court records
Transcript
Life, memory, and case context
Madeline Molina Pantoja was a lifelong resident of Midland, Texas, born on May 25, 2002. Remembered by those close to her as a creative, energetic, and kindhearted young woman, she had a passion for beauty and style and aspired to build a career as a professional cosmetologist. She was deeply devoted to her family, including her parents and her two brothers, Roberto Jr. and Christian. Her sudden absence was immediately recognized as alarming by her family and her best friend, Jasmine Hernandez, because she would never willingly leave her pet dog without food and water. Madeline passed away just days before her 21st birthday.
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Fatal incident and reported circumstances
On May 11, 2023, officers responded to Madeline Pantoja’s apartment on West Francis Avenue in Midland after concerns were raised about her whereabouts, but they apparently did not enter the residence at that time. The following day, May 12, police returned after receiving a report that a woman had been heard screaming. Officers gained entry, photographed the apartment, and observed evidence suggesting that the residence may have been cleaned, including sticky flooring and a dirty mop.
Investigators later determined that Madeline had been attacked inside the apartment by her former boyfriend, Mario Juan Chacon Jr. According to court records and medical findings, she was beaten with his hands and at least one object and died from strangulation and suffocation.
Surveillance footage reportedly captured Chacon’s truck near South County Road 116 at approximately 3:22 a.m., contradicting portions of the account he gave investigators and helping direct the search to a rural area of Midland County. On May 20, 2023, authorities searched an area near East County Road 190 and South County Road 1138, where they found Madeline’s remains concealed inside a coffee table. Chacon was arrested that same day and initially held on a $3 million bond.
Aftermath and case developments
When family members were let into Pantoja's apartment on May 11, 2023, they noticed her dog was neglected, her phone and keys were left behind, and her coffee table was missing. Law enforcement subsequently executed search warrants and discovered a dark stain on her mattress, missing bedding, and holes punched through the bedroom and bathroom doors. As days passed without answers, her family and community members marched in protest of the Midland Police Department's handling of the case.
Following a breakthrough using Chacon's cellular location data, investigators focused on a rural area of Midland County, discovering Pantoja's remains on May 20, 2023. Chacon was arrested that day and held on a $3 million bond. Following indictment and pre-trial procedures, Chacon avoided a jury trial by pleading guilty on February 20, 2026, in the 142nd District Court to charges of first-degree murder and tampering with physical evidence. Under the terms of the plea agreement, he received a 35-year sentence for murder and a concurrent 20-year sentence for tampering, with parole eligibility after serving 17.5 years.
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Prevention context
This case illustrates the critical danger window that occurs during and immediately after a relationship breakup, which is a well-documented trigger for lethal escalation in domestic abuse. It highlights how a perpetrator's prior history of volatile behavior... indicated here by Chacon’s previous conviction for deadly conduct...serves as a clear warning sign of physical danger. The initial delay in processing the scene and obtaining early search warrants, which drew sharp public criticism from the victim's family, points to a common systemic barrier: the need for law enforcement to treat unexplained disappearances with immediate domestic violence protocols when there is a known history of relationship distress.
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Family interviews and memorial voices
When families choose to speak, their words help preserve memory, context, and the human reality behind the public record.
Family interview
Mario Juan Chacon Sentenced for Killing Madeline Pantoja
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Mario Juan Chacon Sentenced for Killing Madeline Pantoja
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911 calls and dispatch audio
Emergency call material can help clarify the timeline and institutional response, and should be approached with care.
911 call or dispatch audio
911-callby-Roberto
This is the 911 call made by Madeline's brother.
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Court Records of Chacon
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Court records and public filings
Public filings, police reports, court dockets, and related records help establish what is documented, what remains disputed, and where warnings were recorded.
Court record or filing
Court Records of Chacon
Files can be seen via court records on the website.
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Court Records of Chacon
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Additional evidence and source material
Some materials do not fit neatly into one category but still belong in the documentary record of the case.
Document or transcript
CR59381---RE-INDICTMENT
The Indictment
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Mario Juan Chacon Sentenced for Killing Madeline Pantoja
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Document or transcript
Order Denying Defendants Renewed Motion for Bond Reduction
On 11/16/2023 motion for Bond Reduction is DENIED and remains at $3,000,000.00
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Bond reduction denied for Mario Chacon Jr. charged with murder of Madeline Pantoja
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News report
Surveillance Evidence
Flock cameras and security footage showed a pickup truck matching Chacon's driving near South County Road 1160 (near where the body was later found) at 1:59 a.m. and 3:22 a.m. the night of the murder.
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Surveillance Evidence
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News report
Madeline's 21st Birthday
Madeline's 21st birthday fell on May 25, 2023, just days after her remains were found. Loved ones held a balloon release in her honor. A memorial mass was held at Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church on May 27.
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Madeline's 21st Birthday
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Document or transcript
Relationship Timeline
Madeline had ended her relationship with Chacon the day before he killed her.
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Relationship Timeline
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Video
The Interrogation of Mario Chacon
Watch the full interrogation of Mario Chacon Jr.
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The Interrogation of Mario Chacon
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News report
Man hid ex-girlfriend's corpse in her own coffee table after she broke up with him
Mario Juan Chacon Jr. pleaded guilty to murdering his former girlfriend, 20-year-old Madeline Pantoja, and tampering with evidence. Madeline was last heard from on May 10, 2023, and was reported missing after friends and family could not reach her.
Investigators later found signs of a violent struggle and attempted cleanup inside her Midland apartment. Surveillance footage, traffic cameras, and cellphone data contradicted Chacon’s account of his movements and helped lead authorities to a rural area where Madeline’s remains were found on May 20, 2023.
An autopsy determined that she died from strangulation and suffocation and had also been beaten. Chacon was sentenced to 35 years for murder and 20 years for tampering with evidence, with both sentences to run concurrently.
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Man hid ex-girlfriend's corpse in her own coffee table after she broke up with him
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