House cleaner shot dead beside husband after arriving at wrong home, IN cops say
A mother of four hired to clean an Indiana home was shot dead when she tried to enter the wrong house, authorities say.
Officers arrived at the Whitestown home Nov. 5 when someone called 911 early to report a “possible” break-in, according to a police news release.
When members of the Whitestown Metropolitan Police Department arrived, they found a woman suffering from a gunshot wound on the front porch of the home, officers said. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
She was identified in a GoFundMe as Maria Florinda Rios Perez, “a hardworking mother of four.”
The Indianapolis Star spoke to the husband of Rios Perez, who told reporters he was beside his wife when she was shot.
“She didn’t even put the key in when I heard the shot happen,” Mauricio Velazquez told the IndyStar through a translator. “I saw my wife had stepped back twice, and then the keys dropped. Then she dropped, and I went to catch her. I was trying to console her and tell her everything was going to OK, but I was seeing the blood coming out.”
Police said an investigation revealed the victim was part of a cleaning crew, and she mistakenly arrived at the wrong home before being shot.
The shot had reportedly been fired from inside the home, according to WXIN.
The shooting was called an “isolated incident” and remains under investigation, police said. No charges have been filed, with officers expecting an update in the case within the next week.
As part of its investigation, police said its “investigators are meticulously collecting and analyzing all relevant evidence to understand the full scope of what occurred.”
“We respectfully ask the public to place their trust in the investigative process and refrain from sharing unverified information,” police said. “These cases are often complex and require time to fully understand. Misinformation can be harmful to those involved and to the integrity of the investigation.”
Among the alleged misinformation shared on social media was that the home was occupied by a police officer, but the department said there is no validity to this claim.
Velázquez told the IndyStar he is demanding justice, /sayinn the shooter should have called police instead of firing the fatal shot.
Loved ones knew Rios Perez “as a beacon of kindness, humility and strength,” according to the GoFundMe.
“She worked tirelessly to support her loved ones, often taking extra jobs to provide a better life for her children,” the fundraiser states. “Friends and coworkers remember her infectious smile, her laughter, and the way she always made time to help others — even when life was hard. Her heart was as big as her dreams for her family.”
Whitestown is about a 20-mile drive northwest from downtown Indianapolis.
This story was originally published November 6, 2025 at 7:54 AM with the headline "House cleaner shot dead beside husband after arriving at wrong home, IN cops say."