The search for the man suspected of killing four people and seriously injuring another in Dallas on Sunday afternoon ended Sunday night after he reportedly killed himself during a chase by state police near Austin.
According to Dallas Police, officers were dispatched to the 9700 block of Royce Drive on Sunday at approximately 4:20 p.m. in reference to a shooting.
Upon arrival, officers located the bodies of three adults (20-year-old Vanessa de la Cruz, 33-year-old Karina Lopez, and 50-year-old Jose Lopez) and two injured 15-year-old children. discovered. A girl and 1-year-old Logan de la Cruz. A 13-year-old girl was inside her home at the time of the shooting and was not injured.
NBCDFW.com
The toddler died at a hospital from his injuries, police said. The teenage girl was treated and released.
“It hasn't sunk in yet. I wish they were still here, but I can't believe they're not,” said Karina Lopez's sister and Vanessa Delacruz's aunt, who requested anonymity.
She said the 1-year-old was the family's first boy.
The aunt said her other nieces witnessed the shooting inside the house.
“They are hurt and traumatized because they saw what happened,” the aunt said of the 15-year-old boy who was shot and the 13-year-old boy who hid. She said Karina Lopeas has five daughters and two others were not home at the time.
Dallas police said investigators identified the suspect Sunday as 21-year-old Byron Carrillo. Law enforcement officials have not yet confirmed a motive for the killing, nor have they linked the victims to the shooter.
The victim's family said Carrillo had a history of assaulting Vanessa before their 1-year-old son was born. Carrillo lived next door.
“My niece was tired of it, so she moved here to my sister and brother-in-law's house,” her aunt said a few days ago about her recent move.
“The baby's father was always threatening the family that one day someone would be killed. This was not the first time a gun had been pointed at him,” the aunt said.
Officials said Carrillo was wearing an ankle monitor for the 2021 aggravated assault charge, but the monitor was disconnected at some point before or after the shooting. Officials said Carrillo stole the car and headed south on Interstate 35 toward central Texas.
According to the Texas Department of Public Safety, state troopers received a tip that Carrillo may be heading south on Interstate 35 in a Jeep Grand Cherokee. Around 8:30 p.m. Sunday, officers spotted a vehicle matching the description and attempted to stop the driver.
The driver refused to pull over and attempted to flee, but crashed into a ditch near Exit 238 in North Austin.
DPS said the driver fled the crash and entered behind a business on the southbound access road. Dallas police said the man stopped in a parking lot and shot himself once in the head at the scene.
The man later died from his injuries, according to DPS.
According to court documents obtained by NBC 5, Carrillo was charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon after he was accused of threatening Vanessa de la Cruz with a deadly weapon on August 7, 2021. same day.
Bail conditions set for Carrillo on Nov. 20 stated that Carrillo's bail was set at $100,000 and that he was not allowed to consume alcohol, possess weapons or have contact with the victim.
On November 22, Carrillo was ordered to wear an ankle monitor. A fugitive notice from Dallas County shows he was issued a falsification warning on Dec. 3 at 4:22 p.m.
Last year, Texas passed a law making ankle monitor tampering a third-degree felony after a parolee with a history of amputating his ankle monitors killed two Dallas hospital workers.
“The law is great in theory,” says Dr. Alex del Carmen, a criminal justice professor at Tarleton State University. “The problem with this law is that it assumes that all criminals are rational and are considering the possibility of committing another crime by cutting into a particular ankle bracelet.”
Del Carmen said the process that allowed suspects like Carrillo to wear ankle monitors in the first place needs to be revisited.
Carrillo was scheduled to return to court on December 5th.
Dallas police said Carrillo's death is being investigated by the Texas Rangers.
