Facebook Brenda Delgado (left) and Ricky Paniagua with Kendra Hatcher (right)
Kendra Hatcher was shot and killed on September 2, 2015, and detectives soon began investigating a murder-for-hire plot involving Brenda Delgado, the ex-girlfriend of Hatcher’s new boyfriend. Investigators said that Delgado was jealous that her ex, Dr. Ricardo “Ricky” Paniagua, began dating Hatcher a few months after their breakup, Texas Monthly reported.
Hatcher and Paniagua were planning to leave on a vacation to Mexico on September 3, and Paniagua was upstairs in Hatcher’s apartment when she was shot and killed in the parking garage, Dallas Morning News reported. According to the outlet, Paniagua learned of his girlfriend’s death from a lobby employee in the building.
While Delgado was convicted of capital murder for her role in orchestrating Hatcher’s death, many are wondering where Paniagua is today and whether he has spoken publicly about his relationships with both the victim and the perpetrator in this crime.
Paniagua Moved Back to His Native California After Hatcher’s Death, Where He Now Lives
Paniagua is a doctor who specializes in dermatology and he moved to Dallas to complete his residency in dermatology. After Hatcher’s death, Paniagua moved back to California, where he now lives, and he works at the Roseville Medical Center with Kaiser Permanente, according to My Doctor Online. In his profile, he wrote, “I feel fortunate to now be in the Sacramento Valley with the opportunity to live close to family. … My sincerest goal is to provide empathetic, respectful, and kind care while identifying the optimal management strategy for each patient.”
According to Texas Monthly, Paniagua was already planning to move back to California before Hatcher’s death. The outlet reported that Paniagua messaged Delgado in the summer of 2015 and told her that he would be moving to Sacramento in October after he was offered a position at a medical clinic there. Paniagua and Delgado were still in touch platonically after their breakup, Texas Monthly wrote, and the doctor was letting his ex know that he was leaving town.
Paniagua appeared in court during Delgado’s trial, testifying that he had strange run-ins with his ex after their breakup, but he’d assumed they were coincidental, CBS News reported. He testified that while he was waiting upstairs in Hatcher’s apartment, he became increasingly concerned about her lack of responses to messages: “I kept asking repeatedly, ‘is Kendra okay? I became even more specific, I said: is she still alive?’”
Paniagua does not have an active social media profile so not much is known about his personal life since his girlfriend’s murder. Apart from his appearances in court, he has not spoken publicly about the horrific crime that occurred on September 2, 2015.
Paniagua Grew Up in California & Moved to Dallas to Complete His Medical Residency
Paniagua was born and raised in Northern California in a humble single-wide trailer, according to Texas Monthly, and attended Stanford medical school before moving to Dallas in 2011 to complete his medical residency in dermatology at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. When he met Hatcher in 2015, he was working as an assistant professor at the university.
Paniagua was married before dating Delgado and was in the process of a divorce when he moved to Texas from California, the outlet wrote. He was attracted to Delgado’s drive and their first date was to a Jennifer Lopez concert.
However, he testified that when he met Hatcher, things progressed very quickly as they were very well-matched. “Things progressed quite rapidly,” Paniagua said. “Our values were matched. Our interests were really in sync right from the get-go.”
READ NEXT: New Mexico Woman Killed Grandfather & Stuffed Him in Toolbox: Cops