According to a newly released search warrant affidavit, the last man seen with Christina Morris lied to police, scrubbed his car clean and had visible injuries in the days after the young woman's mysterious disappearance.
Enrique Arochi, an Allen High School graduate like Morris, has not been charged with a crime or even officially named as a suspect in her disappearance. He has repeatedly said he is innocent.
Morris, 23, has been missing since August 30, 2014, when she left a party at the Shops at Legacy in Plano. Video surveillance captures Morris walking into darkened parking garage with Arochi around 4 am. It's the last time anyone has seen or heard from the young woman. Morris' father, mother and stepmother have been extremely active in the search for their daughter, handing out thousands of fliers, raising reward money, and speaking to local and national media outlets.
"The most likely way Morris could have left the parking garage undetected was in Arochi's vehicle," the affidavit reads.
Searches by foot, horse, ATV, car and drone have all come up empty. But newly released court documents show police do have at least one lead in the case, and it's Arochi.
A search warrant affidavit for the young man's car lays out a number of disturbing details about Arochi's actions in the days following Morris' disappearance. For starters, police say he lied to them about where he parked his car and if he walked with Morris.
"Arochi insisted he did not enter the parking garage with Morris," the affidavit reads. Surveillance video contradicts this information and shows the pair walking closely together into the night.
"Arochi has made numerous false statements and omitted pertinent information to [police] during the course of the investigation into Morris' disappearance," the affidavit reads.
When police searched Arochi's 2010 Camaro, officers noted "the vehicle's interior appeared to be extremely clean and to have been recently vacuumed." There was also fresh damage to the Camaro's front fender. Arochi told police he punched the car with his fist, which explained the car's damage and why his hand was bruised. The affidavit additionally states that Arochi had bruising to his right forearm that he said came from "turning his tires around."
A detective who consulted with a collision center in Plano wrote that the damage to Arochi's car was "inconsistent" with the young man's explanation. Video surveillance from a Kroger gas station at 10 am on August 30 shows Arochi "inspecting" his passenger side door before wiping it down "with an unknown material." According to detectives, Arochi then walks to the trunk area of his car and scrubs it clean with a squeegee. The video was recorded six hours after Arochi and Morris were seen walking in the Shops at Legacy together.
"The most likely way Morris could have left the parking garage undetected was in Arochi's vehicle," the affidavit reads.
One of Arochi's coworkers told a detective that Arochi "looked like shit" when he arrived for work on August 30 and said he had gotten into a fight while at the Shops at Legacy the previous night. The coworker told police Arochi was walking with a limp and had a bite mark on his arm.
Arochi has always maintained his innocence. He told CBS 11 that he feared for his safety and that of his family. On Facebook, he recently changed his profile picture to an image of him kissing a puppy.
Plano Police say they've talked to Arochi a number of times, and they haven't ruled anyone out as a person of interest. Without evidence of a crime, however, Morris' case remains that of a missing person. "We don't have a suspect because we don't have a crime," public information officer David Tilley says.
Anyone with information on Christina's disappearance should call Crime Stoppers at 877-373-TIPS or the Plano Police Department at 972-424-5678.
Enrique Arochi was the last person seen with Christina Morris.
