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Fourth suspect in fatal motel shooting arrested Wednesday after trying to evade police on bicycle, authorities say

John Gallegos, 27, Erica Pererira, 30, Elizabeth Luna, 30, and Israel Ventura, 32. (Houston Police Department)

HOUSTON – Four people face capital murder charges after a man was shot to death at an east Houston motel.

Suspects John Gallegos, 27, Erica Pererira, 30, and Elizabeth Luna, 30, are charged with capital murder in the 208th State District Court, authorties said in a news release. The fourth suspect, Israel Ventura, 32, is charged with capital murder in the 174th State District Court.

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The suspects are accused in the shooting death of Wilfredo Javier Rodriguez Almendarez, 34.

On Tuesday, August 17 Gallegos, Pererira and Luna were all arrested without incident, authorities said in the release. Ventura remained at large for nearly a month until police received a tip Wednesday which led to his arrest. Officers said Ventura attempted to evade them on a bicycle.

RELATED: Motel 6 housekeeper finds man shot multiple times in room, HPD says

Almendarez was fatally shot in his motel room at approximately 6:45 a.m. on Tuesday, August 10.

Authorities said a motel housekeeper found Almendarez unresponsive and lying on the floor at about 11 a.m. He had been shot multiple times. The housekeeper called 911, then saw officers investigating an unrelated call at the same address and flagged them down.

During an investigation into Almendarez’s death, officers identified Gallegos, Pererira, Luna and Ventura as suspects in this case.

Anyone with information on the case is urged to contact the HPD Homicide Division at 713-308-3600 or Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS.


About the Author
Briana Zamora-Nipper headshot

Briana Zamora-Nipper joined the KPRC 2 digital team in 2019. When she’s not hard at work in the KPRC 2 newsroom, you can find Bri drinking away her hard earned wages at JuiceLand, running around Hermann Park, listening to crime podcasts or ransacking the magazine stand at Barnes & Noble.

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