Four Arrested in California Murder-for-Hire Plot Targeting 30-Year-Old Father

Aaron Parr, 30, was found dead inside an apartment at The Arbors at California Oaks complex on Jackson Avenue in Murrieta on January 13. Patrol officers were summoned after discovery of the body and immediately identified signs of foul play, turning the investigation over to homicide detectives. The victim was later identified by family as Aaron "AJ" Parr, a son, brother and father whose loss has left loved ones reeling. Authorities have not released the cause of death, but what followed the discovery in that Murrieta apartment was a multi-state investigation that would eventually net four suspects across three states.

On January 29, police arrested Parr's ex-girlfriend, 40-year-old Ignacia Cadaos Perkins, in Murrieta. That same day, authorities also arrested James Lawrence Petri, 43, an acquaintance of Perkins, in Alabama. Perkins is accused of hiring a hit man to kill her ex-boyfriend, with investigators suggesting the killing was motivated by financial gain. Along with murder, both defendants are charged with special circumstance allegations of lying in wait and killing for financial gain. Petri is additionally charged with sentence-enhancing gun and great bodily injury allegations. Perkins is being held without bail at the Robert Presley Jail in Riverside, while Petri is being held without bail in the Jefferson County Detention Center in Bessemer, Alabama, pending extradition to California.

The investigation did not stop there. "Since the initial arrests, Murrieta Police Detectives have continued to diligently examine a substantial volume of physical evidence, digital evidence, and investigative leads," the department said in an updated release. "Through persistent investigative efforts and coordination with partner agencies across the United States, detectives were able to identify and locate two additional accomplices involved in this homicide."

On March 18, Jerry Wheeler, 34, of Brookhaven, Georgia, and Kenneth Maxwell, 39, of Midfield, Alabama, were both arrested for their alleged connection to Parr's death. Maxwell was arrested without incident near his home by FBI agents executing a warrant on behalf of the Murrieta Police Department. Wheeler was taken into custody the same day by local police, who executed the out-of-state warrant at his residence. Wheeler's arrest was carried out at an apartment complex in the 1700 block of Briarwood Road in Brookhaven. Court records indicated that prosecutors filed special circumstance allegations against both Maxwell and Wheeler of lying in wait and killing for financial gain. Both defendants are being held without bail at detention facilities in their respective counties, awaiting extradition to California.

It remains unclear exactly what roles Wheeler and Maxwell are alleged to have played. Murrieta police confirmed that Parr and Perkins were involved romantically at one time, and that the homicide was motivated by money, but specific details were not disclosed. According to the department, Perkins and Petri were known to one another, but nothing else was divulged about how the woman allegedly enlisted his help.

The arrest of Wheeler was carried out with help from the Murrieta Police Department and tactical support from North Metro SWAT. The Birmingham Police Department, FBI Birmingham Safe Streets Task Force, Washoe County Sheriff's Office, and Jefferson County Sheriff's Office all assisted with Petri's earlier arrest in Alabama, while FBI Birmingham SWAT teams executed the warrant for Maxwell. The Murrieta Police Department publicly thanked its partners for "their professionalism, coordination, and support in safely taking these suspects into custody."

For Parr's family, the arrests have brought a complicated mix of grief and relief. "The world kept moving, but ours stopped the day we lost you," a woman identifying herself as Parr's sister wrote in a social media post weeks after his death. She said the arrests have offered "a small sense of relief" as the case moves forward, though the pain remains. "There is no celebration in it, because nothing will ever bring you back," she wrote.

Murrieta is generally considered a relatively safe city, with a crime rate about 2.2 times lower than the national average, according to City-Data, making the alleged conspiracy that reached from Southern California to Alabama and Georgia an especially jarring case for the community. Anyone with information is encouraged to contact Murrieta Police Detective Leitch at (951) 461-6353. Anonymous tips can be submitted through the Murrieta Police Department's website.