Murder suspect’s body found

Published Sunday, January 14, 2007

By Brian Knox

The body of murder suspect Antonio Limon, 44, of Bowie was found Wednesday only about a quarter-mile from the Hot Skillet Restaurant.

An arrest warrant for murder had been issued for Limon after witnesses said he shot and killed his estranged wife, Maria Limon, 37, of Bowie on Jan. 3 as she arrived at work at the restaurant north of Alvord. Witnesses told investigators that Antonio Limon had walked away from the scene carrying his rifle after the shooting.

Wise County Sheriff David Walker said that dogs brought in the day of the murder tracked Antonio Limon’s scent across U.S. 81/287 into a field near the railroad tracks. An extensive search by ground and air was conducted, but nothing was found.

On Tuesday, the Search One Rescue Team from Lewisville was called by the sheriff’s office to search the fields near the restaurant again. On Wednesday afternoon around 4:15, tracking dogs located the body of Antonio Limon under a tree near the railroad tracks about a quarter mile northwest of the restaurant.

“The search dogs (on Jan. 3) went right near where he was found,” Walker said. “He might have been hiding, because he was in an area we had searched before. Either we missed him, which is hard to believe, or he was hiding and then he came out and shot himself.”

Walker said Antonio Limon had been shot in the head with a rifle. An autopsy was performed Thursday in Dallas. The results, which could determine how long Antonio Limon had been dead, were expected to be released Friday. Walker said it was an apparent self-inflicted wound, and the rifle appeared to be the same one used in the murder.

During their investigation, Walker said they discovered that Antonio Limon had made some possible suicidal statements in the days before his wife’s death, such as telling his kids to name a child after him.

Walker said that Antonio Limon apparently arrived at the Hot Skillet Restaurant Jan. 3 and waited on Maria Limon to arrive. She was a cook at the restaurant. When she pulled into her parking spot around 6:45 a.m., Antonio Limon got out of his van, beat her and then shot her in the head, according to witness statements.

An account has been opened for Limon’s three children (ages 18, 16 and 14), and donations may be made at any Legend Bank location.