A 6-year-old girl watching television was shot and killed during an escalated, ongoing neighbor dispute in her west Hidalgo home, according to Hidalgo County Sheriff J.E. “Eddie” Guerra.
The sheriff confirmed the news via social media Tuesday evening.
Deputies responded to a call reporting deadly conduct at 5:07 p.m., according to the sheriff. The incident happened south of Mile 6 on La Homa Road and east on Valencia Avenue.
“Around four vehicles showed up and fired multiple rounds, we believe about 30 rounds into the house. One of the rounds struck the female child as she was watching television. She died instantly,” Guerra said.
A person of interest is in custody, and they’ve located one of the four vehicles. Guerra said they’ve requested a judge sign a search warrant to look through the seized vehicle. They’re working on getting descriptions of the others to share with law enforcement partners.
The scene is still active while investigators gather evidence. As of 8:20 p.m., Guerra said they had not entered the home.
“We believe that this is an ongoing neighbor dispute. We came out here earlier to take a report of an assault by threat,” the sheriff said. Further details about the dispute were not readily available.
No one else was injured, but the parents were described as distraught.
The sheriff said they believe the child’s stepfather exchanged fire with the gunmen.
No charges have yet been filed, but Guerra said they expect to charge those responsible with capital murder.
This is a developing story.
This post was edited to correct the child’s age based on reports from HCSO.
