HOUSTON – Three men have been arrested after a teenager was shot and killed during an altercation and subsequent robbery Wednesday night in northwest Houston.
Jashon Romero Freeman, 18; Jacorey Jervar Randolph, 19; and Albert Ray Edmond, 18, are all charged with capital murder.
The incident happened about 8 p.m. at the Innsbruck-Lemoyne Apartments at 4603 Sherwood Lane.
Houston police said they believe the victim, identified by family members as 16-year-old Brian Portales, and the three suspects got into an altercation in the parking lot of the apartment complex.
"He tried to fight them back I guess, and one guy just went ahead and shot him," Portales' aunt, Brenda Preciado, said.
One of the men shot Portales several times and took his cell phone, wallet and shoes. Then all three drove away in a black BMW.
The car was spotted by Spring Valley police a short time later, and the men were taken into custody.
Portales was about to begin his junior year at Heights High School. He’d been working a summer job at NRG Stadium to buy a used truck, according to family members.
Portales’ father is the maintenance man at the apartment building. Many residents knew Portales and his family. On Thursday afternoon, they erected a small shrine at the spot in the parking lot where he died.
"His mom is devastated. My brother is trying to stay strong," Preciado said.
The family is struggling to find the money to pay for his burial. A GoFundMe account has been set up to help defray funeral expenses.
"My family just wants justice, you know. Justice. Nobody should take somebody's life like that," Preciado said. "He was young. He had his whole life in front of him, and he didn’t deserve to die this way."
Homicide detectives are not releasing photographs of the suspects while they try to determine if the three men can be linked to other recent robberies.