Ex-girlfriend ordered a hit on the woman who had replaced her
Consumed by jealously, Brenda Delgado sought a terrible revenge on her former lover’s new girlfriend
Delgado’s thoughts turned very dark – she needed Kendra dead
Brenda Delgado was obsessed by her expartner
On a countdown to a romantic break with her boyfriend, dentist Kendra Hatcher had plenty to smile about. She’d spent the day doing a job she loved and was one sleep away from a long weekend in Cancun, Mexico. As Kendra, 35, finished work and headed back to her luxury Dallas apartment in September 2015, she felt the happiness that her loved ones knew she deserved.
Originally from Illinois, Kendra had worked hard at everything she put her mind to. Whether it was making it onto the volleyball team at high school, or being captain of the cheerleading squad, Kendra gave her all. In her spare time, she was involved with the church and the community. Everyone was drawn to her kindness and her contagious smile.
After studying dentistry, and coming out of a broken marriage to her college boyfriend, Kendra moved to Dallas in 2010 to start her career at a top dental practice. She made lots of friends, rented an upmarket luxury apartment, then met Ricardo “Ricky” Paniagua in June 2015 and fell in love. Life was good.
Kendra and dermatologist Ricardo had a whirlwind romance. Over three months, they dined in popular restaurants, took trips together and posted pictures of themselves on social media looking very happy. One picture showed Kendra standing next to Ricardo, wearing a top that said,“I’m With Dreamy.” The good-looking pair had even talked about starting a wedding fund and meeting each other’s families.
Loved ones realised Kendra was so happy, but there was someone keeping an especially close eye on her blossoming relationship – Ricardo’s ex, Brenda Delgado.They had dated for almost three years before separating in early 2015.They’d remained on good terms and Delgado stayed in touch with Ricardo, keen to stay friends. Ricardo often bumped into her while he was out jogging. On reflection, that wasn’t the coincidence he’d thought it was. Delgado had been keeping tabs on her
ex ever since they’d split.
OBSESSIVE BEHAVIOUR
Delgado, 31, who was studying to be a dental hygienist, still had Ricardo’s passwords to his email and his iCloud and she had downloaded an app that allowed her to track the location of his mobile. She was stalking Ricardo and becoming increasingly agitated over his seemingly perfect relationship with Kendra. Kendra’s Facebook was public, so Delgado could see that Ricardo was taking Kendra on trips and how deeply in love they looked. In an email to Delgado, Ricardo innocently told her that things were going really great with Kendra and he was happy. But that didn’t sit well with Delgado. Her love for Ricardo had turned into an obsession.
Despite coming from a good family, and having no criminal past, Delgado’s thoughts became very dark. She started to approach friends about getting them to hurt Kendra. Then she decided she needed Kendra dead. Delgado approached a friend of a friend, single mum Crystal Cortes. She was desperate for money, and incredibly, despite hardly knowing Delgado, she agreed to help her and be a getaway driver in return for a few hundred dollars.They recruited small-time drug dealer Kristopher Love to pull the trigger. Delgado made up a story that she was connected to a drug cartel and would pay him with drugs and cash.
The trio started to put together a plan to kill Kendra and make it look like a robbery. They followed Kendra’s movements – watching her with binoculars – then decided to strike.
On 2 September, Delgado borrowed a Jeep from a friend, then got Cortes to drop her off at a public library to meet a classmate so they could study for a dental exam. It was the perfect alibi. Cortes and Love then headed to Kendra’s apartment and lay in wait.
Kendra finished work and headed home, excited about her long weekend. Ricardo was taking her to Cancun for a vacation and on the way back to her apartment, she’d stopped to borrow a waterproof camera from a friend, ready for the beach.
EXECUTIONSTYLE MURDER
As Kendra parked in the garage and got out of the car, Love shot her in the back of the head. Kendra’s handbag was stolen, to make it look like a robbery, and Cortes sped them away from the scene. Kendra was dead.
Kendra’s execution-style killing sent shock waves through the area. People were frightened about being out late on their own and Kendra’s distraught colleagues lay flowers and lit candles at her apartment block, insisting that she didn’t have an enemy in the world. Ricardo was devastated and Delgado was quick to offer her condolences. She even offered to take him groceries and he was touched.
It wasn’t long before investigators realised this was not a robbery and started to piece together what had really happened. They concluded that Kendra was a victim of a murder-for-hire scheme and Delgado was at the centre of it. Police discovered that Delgado had been stalking Ricardo. They traced the black Jeep caught on CCTV cameras back to Delgado’s friend and Delgado’s phone records helped police to track down Love and Cortes. All three were brought in for questioning.
Police struggled to link Delgado to the killing. She was calm as she talked about her alibi. She could prove the time spent in the public library and a receipt showed she went for dinner afterwards. Delgado played down her relationship with Ricardo and said it wasn’t that serious, and the break-up had been fine. She said she didn’t know anything about his new girlfriend.
Delgado had to be released without charge. But the weapon used in the shooting was found in Love’s car, and after being offered a deal, Cortes agreed to testify against Delgado and Love in return for a lesser sentence. Cortes told them everything.
When the police went to apprehend Delgado, they discovered she had fled to Mexico where she had citizenship. A warrant was issued for her arrest and the FBI put her on the Ten Most Wanted list.
The press release connected Delgado to Kendra’s killing and read, “Delgado is suspected of hiring two alleged co-conspirators to facilitate the murder. Both co-conspirators have been arrested and are currently in custody.” There was also a $100,000 reward offered and the public was told not to approach “dangerous” Delgado.
Those who knew Delgado refused to believe that she would have had anything to do with Kendra’s killing. Even Ricardo was in disbelief. Delgado hadn’t shown the signs of being a jealous ex who was angry – she’d remained sweet and helpful. But it had all been part of her plan to get him back. When Delgado had been dating Ricardo, they’d briefly split until she happened to attend his salsa classes and they’d reunited for a few more months. Coincidence? Police were convinced that anything Delgado did was part of a meticulous plan.
Six months after Kendra’s death, Delgado was found and arrested in Torreón, Mexico. She was extradited to Dallas for trial. Her accomplices faced their fate first. In return for testifying against Delgado and Love, Cortes, 26, was sentenced to 35 years for murder. Her testimony ensured that in 2018, Love, 34, was convicted of capital murder. His lawyers said that he’d only stolen from Kendra and that it was Cortes who had pulled the trigger. Love was sentenced to the death penalty.
DAMNING TESTIMONY
In 2019, Delgado went to trial. It wasn’t the strongest case against her. She had an alibi at the time of the shooting. But Cortes’s testimony was damning. She said that Delgado was “obsessed”with Ricardo.“She wanted to get rid of Kendra Hatcher because she was envious of her,” Cortes said. Delgado’s defence said that Cortes had killed Kendra and was accusing Delgado to get a lesser sentence. But the evidence of Delgado’s relentless stalking was enough to show motive.
It took jurors just 20 minutes to find Delgado guilty of capital murder and she was sentenced to life in prison without the chance of parole. Due to her dual citizenship, she couldn’t get the death penalty. Kendra’s mum, Bonnie Jameson, was emotional as she spoke to the court about how her daughter’s death had left her living in hell.
“If justice could have handed you a death sentence, make no mistake, I would have been there front and centre,” she said to Kendra’s killer. “You, Brenda Delgado, are the root of all evil. You and the other two people you took with you on your path of destruction. You could’ve never measured up to be the woman that my daughter, Kendra Hatcher, was.”
Kendra was gunned down for simply falling in love. It was a brutal death, orchestrated by a woman who had become so obsessed that she’d turned to murder to try to manipulate the future. In the end, there were no winners.
‘You are the root of all evil. You could never measure up to Kendra’