Does a post warning of a "dangerous Hispanic couple" who purportedly killed three female police officers describe a real situation? No, that's not true: There is no recent crime involving a couple who killed three female police officers. The two photos in this post are real people but they are not a couple. The woman pictured is currently serving a 40-year prison term in Texas for a 2012 murder to which she pleaded guilty. The man pictured is wanted by the Roswell, Georgia, police department in connection with the murder of a woman identified as the man's girlfriend. The fake story in this post has been paired with a variety of photos, all purportedly representing a "dangerous couple." This post is an example of a bait-and-switch scam that begins by tricking people into sharing a post that will then be edited to become something else.
One version of this appeared in a post (archived here) published on January 28, 2025, in the Texas-based Facebook group HEB Bedford Euless Hurst Southlake Grapevine & Surrounding Sell your things. The post is captioned:
URGENT: AlertPlease lock your doors and stay vigilant. A Dangerous Hispanic Couple Husband serial Killer Roberto Diminguez (49) and the woman Jennifer Samantha Puente (30), a House Burglar are on the run after killing 3 female police officers on Saturday here in #bedford
Warn othersThey go around preying on elderly people, vandalizing parked vehicles, knocking on peoples' doors claiming to be homeless ,seeking for help & then attacking you after gaining your trust. They're ruthless and very dangerous
. They're also armed so if you see them please do not approach just call the police.
LET'S BUMP THIS POST AND HELP WARN OTHERS
This is what the post looked like on Facebook at the time of writing:
(Source: Facebook screenshot taken on Thu Jan 30 17:34:31 2025 UTC)
The story detailed in this post is false on several counts. There is no fugitive couple wanted for recently killing three female police officers, and the location of the crime mentioned in these scam posts is not consistent. It is changed to match the location of the targeted Facebook group. Several police departments have issued statements after these false Facebook posts circulated in their communities. One example is this statement from the Madisonville, Kentucky, police department that appeared in a January 27, 2025, wevv.com article (archived here):
According to MPD, a scam post is circulating on Facebook, claiming that three female officers were shot.
MPD says the post also provides photos of supposed 'suspects.'
'Please note that this information is entirely false,' MPD said in a post addressing the situation. 'Our department will keep the community and news media informed if any such incidents actually occur.'
A January 28, 2025, news video segment on wcjb.com (archived here) reports a similar statement from the Ocala, Florida, police department. Another report (archived here) contains a statement from the Hinesville, Georgia, police department, and another report (archived here) has a statement from San Antonio, Texas, police saying that this post is a scam.
The people pictured in the posts are also not always the same people. This post from the Texas-based Facebook group features a photo of a man named Roberto Dominguez Soto, who is currently wanted by the police in Roswell, Georgia, in connection with a murder that occurred on Christmas Even in 2024 -- but he is not wanted for killing three female police officers. The City of Roswell, Georgia, shared a Crime Stoppers poster (archived here) featuring this picture of Soto (pictured below) on X on January 24, 2025.
(Source: X screenshot taken on Thu Jan 30 19:22:41 2025 UTC)
The woman pictured is Jennifer Puente. Her photo appeared in a July 3, 2024, fox4news.com article (archived here and pictured below) titled, "Woman sentenced to 40 years in prison for murdering 15-year-old, setting body on fire." The crime happened in 2012 in Ellis County, Texas. After a decade on the run in Mexico she was extradited back to Texas where she pleaded guilty and was sentenced to 40 years in prison for that crime, according to the news report.
(Source: fox4news.com screenshot taken on Thu Jan 30 19:30:39 2025 UTC)
The composite image below shows a sampling of posts returned when Lead Stories searched Facebook with the phrase taken from the post, "Please lock your doors and stay vigilant. A Dangerous." The scope of this fact check will not extend to identifying all the people in these photos. These posts feature the place names Kingwood, Tricities, "ewBeanfels" and Burlington. The names listed are Willie Haughton, Aileen Renee and Matthew Mejia. The names Ryan Edward and Alice Chapman are represented by photos of four different people.
(Source: Lead Stories composite image with Facebook screenshots taken on Thu Jan 30 20:19:35 2025 UTC)
Lead Stories has debunked a wide variety of false claims associated with this type of "bait-and-switch" scam. They work by encouraging people to share a post from a Facebook group. Once the post has been shared it will be edited to become something else, commonly a false advertisement for a rent-to-own home, which leads to an information-harvesting website.
In the composite image below, two posts that originally had an "URGENT: Alert!!" warning have been edited to become something else entirely. The "edit history" of a post can be seen by clicking on the three dots (•••) in the upper right corner of the post. The post on the left (archived here) is now captioned:
Title: Rent to Own
Price: $550
3 bedroom, 2 bath house in the area, estimated cost $550 per month. Stove and refrigerator included, Gas heat and trash is
included in rent.
Conveniently located near shopping center and it is in a safe neighbourhood. All pets allowed.
See more information here: cutt.ly/ve4DntNI
The post on the right (archived here) is now captioned:
I am so happy😍 This is the signup bonus i received from Survey Junkie in 3 easy steps.
I signed up, received an email and confirmed my email then boom 💥 i got paid💰
Get paid yours by signing up using the website below ⬇️⬇️⬇️
https://cutt.ly/ke4mUCpo
Let's make some extra cash to cover expenses this month of January💵🔥❤️
(Source: Lead Stories composite image with Facebook screenshots taken on Thu Jan 30 20:53:26 2025 UTC)
Additional Lead Stories fact checks on bait and switch scams can be found here.
