Thomas Perez Sr. case on Dateline- A detailed case overview

In Fontana, California, an evening walk turned into a mystery, with flaws in police interrogation tactics. On August 7, 2018, Thomas ‘Papa Tom’ Perez Sr., stepped out with his dog, Margo, to check the mailbox just around the corner from his home. When Margo returned alone, leash dragging, his son, Thomas Perez Jr., grew concerned.

A series of events made police believe a crime had been committed, with Perez Jr. as their main suspect. Detectives, in a marathon session of over 17 hours, applied deception and pressure on the son for a false confession from him as if his father was dead which in fact was not the case; Thomas Perez Sr. was alive, ignorant of the drama.

This case came to light in The Ruse, from NBC Dateline, reported by Lester Holt. The episode aired on Friday, December 5, 2025, on NBC. Viewers can stream it on Peacock or catch reruns on NBC's schedule. 

Dateline​​​​​​: The disappearance of Tom Perez Sr. and initial response

Thomas Perez Sr. was a friendly, retired real estate agent who lived in a modest neighborhood of single-story homes in Fontana with his son. Shortly before 9:45 p.m. on the night of Aug. 7, 2018, he put a leash on Margo to take a quick trip to the mailbox two minutes away. That evening, Perez Sr. did not return.

Margo trotted back alone, and Perez Jr., who had moved in recently after a divorce, went out looking for him. He checked the local places where his father might have gone, but found nothing.

By the next afternoon, August 8, concern turned into action. Perez Jr. called the Fontana Police Department, describing his father as 5 feet 8 inches tall, with gray hair and glasses, and asked officers to contact him if an elderly man matching that description was seen.

"I just want to know that if there’s an elderly man walking in the neighborhood... let me know, it may be my father,"

He said calmly, as per People. Police dispatched community service officers to the home. They noted ongoing construction debris inside a remnant of Perez Jr.'s renovation work and asked routine questions about the father-son relationship. No arguments were reported, and the home, by all accounts, was normal. 

Officers took a missing persons report and left, but soon returned with detectives. Meanwhile, unbeknownst to the family, Thomas Perez Sr. had visited his brother earlier that day and then a friend, having forgotten his cell phone at home.

He was supposed to fly out from Los Angeles International Airport to visit his daughter, but was unable to call anyone. Cadaver dogs brought into the residence became interested in the bedroom, possibly scents, raising suspicions.

Detectives got a search warrant within 24 hours, photographed the disarray, and seized Thomas Perez Sr.'s wallet and phone. They took DNA swabs from Perez Jr., in case he was hurt or killed. The search grew larger to take in nearby fields and construction sites, but no body was found.

Family and friends joined the effort, tacking up flyers and canvassing streets, according to the LA Times. 

The escalating interrogation

As the sun set on August 8, detectives Robert Miller, David Janusz, and Kyle Guthrie visited the Perez residence. They invited Perez Jr. to the station for further information, positioning this as a means of assisting in the search. He did so, arriving about 8 p.m.

What had started as a consensual interview soon became an all-night affair. Detectives discussed the missing persons report, including discrepancies in Perez Jr.'s timeline, driven by the disarray of the home and the dog's response.

They took him away from his phone and personal belongings, not allowing him to take breaks to take his medications. Perez Jr. was withdrawing from psychiatric drugs to combat bipolar disorder.

Questions became accusatory: Had he argued with his father? Where was the body? Officers drove him around Fontana in an unmarked car, stopping at dirt fields, a coffee shop dumpster, and construction zones, implying these were potential burial sites. "We know what happened," they insisted, lying about finding blood evidence and Thomas Perez Sr.'s decomposed body in the yard, as People reported.

The interrogation, which lasted from evening into the next morning, included tag-team questioning. Detectives at times withheld water and food and ignored pleas for either a lawyer or medical help.

They brought in Margo, suggesting she would be euthanized if not cooperative. Perez Jr.'s friend, Carl Peraza, a real estate partner, was called to the station and urged by police to convince him to confess, under the guise of leniency.

Peraza visited briefly but was barred from returning. Audio recordings captured the pressure: officers claimed video surveillance showed Perez Jr. dragging a body and that neighbors heard screams.

Sleep-deprived and disoriented, Perez Jr. repeatedly denied involvement, saying, "I love my dad. I would never hurt him." Yet the tactics persisted, blurring lines between fact-finding and coercion, as per the LA Times.

The breakdown and shocking revelation

Around the 16-hour mark, the pressure peaked. Detectives confronted Perez Jr. with fabricated photos of a body and threats of life imprisonment. Overwhelmed, he began pulling out clumps of hair, tore off his shirt, and collapsed on the floor, sobbing. In a haze, he uttered fragmented apologies: 

"I'm sorry, Dad. I had no idea. I love you," and to his sister via phone, "I didn't mean to take your daddy away." 

Police interpreted this as a confession, recording it and having him sign a statement. After throwing up, he attempted suicide by cutting his arms with a staple remover while he was left alone for a short while. Officers then invoked California's 72-hour psychiatric hold, transporting him to a hospital ward around 10 p.m. on August 9.

There, he remained for three days, isolated from news, according to People. Meanwhile, the truth emerged. Earlier that day, Thomas Perez Sr.'s daughter spotted media reports of the missing man at LAX and called Fontana police:

 "That's my father, he's alive, waiting for a flight to see me." 

Detectives confirmed it but withheld the information, blocking Perez Jr.'s calls to prevent contamination. Perez Sr., phone-less and unaware, boarded his flight. On August 12, after release, Perez Jr. reunited with his father at home. 

Stunned, he stared and whispered, "Dad, is that really you? They told me you were dead." Thomas Perez Sr. replied, No, I'm here. The revelation shattered Perez Jr., who described the world turning black and white like an electric shock.

U.S. District Judge Dolly Gee later ruled the tactics amounted to psychological torture, given his mental health vulnerabilities. This moment underscored the interrogation's destructiveness, leaving lasting trauma without any crime committed, as per People. 

Legal battle and lasting impact

In 2019, Perez Jr. filed a federal lawsuit against the City of Fontana, alleging false imprisonment, coercion, and civil rights violations under the Fourth and Fourteenth Amendments. The suit described, in detail, the 17-hour interrogation as unconstitutional, citing sleep deprivation, medication denial, and deliberate lies inducing the false confession.

Court filings included interrogation audio that showed detectives deceiving him about evidence and the fate of the dog. The city said the actions were standard procedure, though civil rights advocates took issue with them.

An internal review was conducted, though no officers were disciplined. In 2024, Fontana settled for $898,000, not admitting guilt, with which Perez Jr. is allowed to cover some of the therapy and lost wages, according to People.

The ordeal strained family ties, but also them. Thomas Perez Sr. went back to hobbies in real estate, while Perez Jr. sought counseling for acute stress disorder and bipolar management.

He now speaks out for interrogation reform, telling his story as a way of exposing risks to mentally ill people. Today, both Perezes live quietly in California; Perez Jr. rebuilds through work and support networks, as per the LA Times.

Watch Dateline episode The Ruse available on NBC.