For years, Dateline has featured some of the most disturbing cases, and this time we are talking about the disappearance of an elderly man who was claimed to be dead but turned out to be alive. This case is about Thomas Perez Sr, who was a 71-year-old man and went missing after a short walk.
His son became concerned and told the police about it. When the authorities took charge, they started to doubt the son, Thomas Perez Jr, and began interrogation. This means that the son who reported his father missing became a prime suspect.
Perez Jr was then subjected to nearly 17 hours of intense questioning during which the officers used deceptive tactics like claiming his father is dead, leading Jr to break down and apologize. And what happened after is really startling.
The police took the statement as a confession and believed that Perez Jr was the one behind his father’s disappearance. The case took another disappointing turn when Thomas Perez Sr was found alive.
Want to explore the complete timeline of this Dateline case and more details? Read below.
Dateline: The Ruse begins with a disappearance that turned suspicious (August 7–8, 2018)
As explained before, Dateline: The Ruse is about a case that was mishandled by the authorities. The entire situation began on August 7, 2018, when 71-year-old Thomas Perez Sr. stepped out of his home in Fontana, California.
He was only supposed to take a quick walk with his dog, Margo, and just to check the mailbox. Within minutes, the dog returned alone, but his father did not. His son did not panic and thought Thomas might have stopped for a conversation with a neighbour, as they knew everyone.
However, it was afternoon, and Thomas Perez Sr did not return, and Perez Jr called on the non-emergency number on August 8 just to ask if anyone had seen a lost man. Dateline episodes reveal that when the police officers visited the house to check after the report, they found the setting a little unusual. Things were grouped together, and the house was a little messy too.
This led them to alert the Fontana Police Department, after which Perez Jr was called to the station for questioning. At this point, the case was getting serious as Perez Jr looked suspicious.
Also Read: Dateline: Out There in the Dark – A complete timeline of the Brandy Daniels murder case, revisited
From concerned son to prime suspect: The 17-hour interrogation (August 8–9, 2018)
The Dateline: The Ruse case also explains that the questioning felt routine as Perez Jr thought the police were trying to locate his father. However, they got a search warrant, and in 24 hours, they searched the house and found some belongings, and even a cadaver dog was brought in, which allegedly reacted to a bedroom.
These findings led the investigators to see Thomas Perez Jr. as the prime suspect and not a concerned son. The interrogation began at night on August 8 and stretched into the early hours of August 9. It was exhausting for Perez Jr, as he did not get any sleep.
Around 5 a.m., police collected his DNA and made it clear he was their main suspect, even though he wasn’t formally under arrest. The next morning, the officers changed their tactics and took Perez Jr to different places like construction sites, dirt fields, and donation areas, thinking he might have disposed of the body there.
The officers constantly pressurised Perez Jr and even told him that his father was dead. They also tried to involve his friend and business partner, encouraging him to help extract a confession. However, Perez repeatedly said that he didn’t kill his father.
These questions left Perez in distress as he started to feel exhausted and even pulled his hair out of tension. After roughly 17 hours of this intense treatment, he reached a breaking point. More than 36 hours after first reporting his father missing, he apologised to his father and sister.
But the shocking part in this case featured on Dateline is that the office took this apology as a confession. Perez never admitted that he killed his father, but the police did not believe him but the misinterpreted confession. He was then left alone after becoming sick and even tried to harm himself.
Dateline: The Ruse reveals the shocking truth and aftermath (August 9 onwards)
Now The most surprising thing that happened in this Dateline case was that police discovered Thomas Perez Sr. was actually alive at the airport, waiting to see his daughter and unaware that his son had been subjected to an intense amount of stress while being interrogated.
The police did not rectify their earlier mistake of not bringing Thomas Sr. into the picture and subsequently, kept Perez Jr. in the dark and placed him in a mental hospital for a period of three days. When he saw his father alive, it was a very emotional and overwhelming moment for him.
Later, Perez Jr. sued the city for $898,000, accusing police of psychological pressure that led to a false confession. The case was settled in 2024, and he has since spoken about the trauma and how the interrogation pushed him to his limit.
Also Read: Dateline: The Silhouette – A complete timeline of the Debbie Kelly murder case, revisited
Continue exploring SoapCentral for regular updates on TV shows.
Edited by Alisha Khan