In 2019, there was a film called Extracurricular Activities, a dark comedy about a teen hired routinely to murder his affluent friends’ parents under the guise of meticulously planned accidents. Although the notion of an inheritance gained due to an untimely death is not a new concept, it rarely plays out that way in real life. But here we are. In what reminds me of the plot of a movie, 19-year-old Darren Munoz quite literally believed he’d get away with murder. The New Mexico teen reportedly cooked up a plan to get his friend to shoot his father and stepmother and offered to split his inheritance as payment.
According to Law & Crime, on December 15, 2025, Clovis Police Department officers responded to a call about a potential burglary at the Munoz residence. According to the reviewed arrest affidavit, Darren greeted officers at the door and assured them everyone was fine. When the officers insisted on checking on his parents, however, Darren told police he didn’t want them going inside because “his parents slept naked.” They eventually got in and discovered both of the adults shot in the head. Dina Munoz, his stepmother, died at the scene, and his father, Oscar Munoz, died later at a nearby hospital.
Police detained Munoz for questioning, and he told them his parents had just returned from a trip to celebrate their anniversary when he heard them come in through the garage door between 9 and 10 p.m. He then lied about being the 911 caller, Law & Crime reported.
Authorities began unraveling his tale, poking holes in his story by asking questions about how he heard the garage alarm but not the two gunshots. Though authorities spoke with his girlfriend, who was staying over that weekend and left early Sunday morning before the murders took place, another mutual friend questioned by police revealed the young man’s sinister plot.
The friend stated that there had been a plan in place for “months” between Munoz, friend Julio Zamora, 18, and another unnamed friend to carry out the crime so they could split the inheritance. Eventually, Munoz’s girlfriend confirmed the plot to police after the murder was covered on the news and a friend called her to say “Darren had done it,” according to US Weekly.
“Darren had wanted his father’s money and Julio had agreed to kill Darren’s parents in exchange for the money when Darren got some,” the girlfriend stated.
Police arrested Zamora later that day, and he confessed he was hired to do the deed. Munoz was arrested the same day. Both were charged with two counts of first-degree murder and conspiracy to murder, with Munoz also receiving a criminal solicitation to commit murder charge, Us Weekly reported. Both are being held without bond and scheduled to appear in court on December 22.
