CHINA GROVE, TX – In a case that has shaken a small Texas community, authorities are unraveling the violent death of a San Antonio-area man found brutally beaten inside a makeshift home on a church property.
Court documents reveal that Abigail Molina, 32, faces murder and evidence tampering charges in the death of her boyfriend, Gilbert Parker, 64. Parker was discovered on Jan. 18, unconscious and partially unclothed, inside a garden shed at the Old Path Baptist Church in China Grove—a rural enclave just east of San Antonio.
Emergency responders arrived after witnesses called for help, reporting that Parker was motionless and covered in dried blood. The shed had been converted into his living quarters. Parker was rushed to a local hospital, but due to the severity of his head injuries, he was later transferred to another medical facility. Despite efforts by medical staff, he never regained the ability to communicate and was pronounced dead two days later.
An autopsy revealed extensive trauma to Parker’s skull, including severe fractures and internal bleeding. A subsequent investigation identified two familiar items missing: his wallet and a 2002 Dodge Dakota pickup truck, which became central to the unfolding probe.
In the days following the assault, Molina contacted local law enforcement, maintaining that the confrontation leading to Parker’s injuries was in self-defense. Authorities have not specified whether she was a person of interest prior to her reaching out.
Investigators soon located Parker’s truck near Houston, freshly cleaned of blood stains and hastily spray-painted. According to law enforcement statements, Molina allegedly sold the vehicle for $300, raising further suspicion about her involvement.
Further complicating the case, members of the church where Parker lived reportedly attempted to clean the crime scene, removing blood and some of Parker’s belongings, including substances later identified as drugs. These actions potentially hindered the investigation and obscured key evidence.
Family and acquaintances described the couple’s relationship as tumultuous. Witnesses mentioned frequent disputes, pointing out a clear imbalance in their level of commitment. Records show that Molina gave inconsistent timelines about her last interaction with Parker, telling officers their most recent altercation happened days before he was found.
Multiple anonymous tips accelerated the probe. One caller claimed a confrontation at a smoke shop spiraled into violence, resulting in Parker’s death. Another directed investigators to a storm drain, where they recovered a claw hammer missing one of its claws—the type of weapon consistent with the wounds Parker sustained.
A former boyfriend of Molina’s told detectives she reached out to him after the assault, crying and describing a blackout episode during which she repeatedly hit Parker with a hammer.
Molina was taken into custody on Feb. 1 and remains in jail as the investigation continues. Those who knew Parker remember him for his love of music and vibrant spirit, now mourned amid the circumstances of his tragic end.