A Starr County grand jury formally indicted a man for his participation in a murder that went cold for nearly two decades.
Luis Carlos Mares was indicted on two charges Nov. 23 for his involvement in the murder of Dario Salmon, who was 45 years old at the time of his death.
Mares, however, is currently serving two 60-year sentences for an attempted capital murder in Webb County in 2004 and the murder of a woman strangled with her own shoelace in Hidalgo County in 2003.
Salmon was stabbed Jan. 21, 2001, and his body was discovered in the front yard of his Rio Grande City home.
Mares “intentionally and knowingly” caused Salmon’s death “by stabbing him,” the indictment said.
The second charge named the man Mares told Starr County Special Crime Unit investigators murdered Salmon.
Mares agreed “with Joe Bazan that one of them would engage in conduct that would constitute the offense, namely driving Joe Bazan to a location to kill Dario Salmon,” the second count read.
Mares told the The Monitor Sept. 12 that he had previously attempted to talk about the murder with a former district attorney, but the case was not advanced.
The Starr County Special Crimes Unit, which received the case in January 2021, realized some evidence had gone ignored, namely the DNA lab analysis of a cigarette butt found at the crime scene.
Commander Robert Caples announced the break in the case and Mares’ subsequent confession on July 26.
An arraignment for Marez is scheduled for Feb. 14, 2022, according to information from the 229th state District Court.
