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Two arrested in connection with recent violence
August 11, 2006
Andres R. Martinez
Monitor Staff Writer


EDINBURG — Two 16-year-olds were arrested Thursday in connection with a 24-hour mini crime wave in western Hidalgo County that included two home invasions, a drive-by shooting and a sexual assault.

The teens, whose names were withheld because of their age, were arrested Thursday shortly after noon, said Hidalgo County Sheriff Lupe Treviño. He plans to ask Hidalgo County District Attorney Rene Guerra to charge the two as adults. They are the only suspects in the case.

"They picked the homes at random; they weren’t targeting anyone," he said. "I don’t think I have seen a case perpetrated by juveniles with this level of viciousness and violence."

All of the crimes happened in the Palmview and La Joya areas, Treviño said, declining to give the addresses for the crimes.

The crime spree began 7:49 a.m. Wednesday when the teens busted into a home waving what victims described as AK-47 assault rifles, Treviño said during a press conference Thursday.

Twelve hours later, the two struck again.

This time, they invaded a home and sexually assaulted a woman at the house, said the sheriff.

Just three hours, later the teens fired the assault rifles at an acquaintance of theirs as they drove by, he said. The acquaintance did help investigators track down the suspects.

"We believe they were escalating in violence," Treviño said. "We thought it would escalate to the point that someone would be killed."

Shortly after the shooting, Treviño called two of his captains and asked them to put together 25 deputies to hunt the two suspects down.

The 25 officers from the special crimes, robbery, homicide and other divisions fanned out at 6 a.m. Thursday in the western part of Hidalgo County to look for an older-model white Pontiac Les Mans.

They also contacted the La Joya school district, where at least one of the teens is a student, and Palmview police, which is handling a report of two teens invading a home earlier this week. They are investigating whether the teens arrested Thursday may be involved, Treviño said.

The deputies arrested one of the teens at a house on Grindalia Street, near the intersection of Brushline Road and 7 Mile Line. The other teen was arrested walking just a few blocks away. The two provided officers with aliases.

Officers were searching the Grindalia Street home Thursday looking for bandanas and the assault rifles that the two teens are said to have used. One of the teens is an illegal immigrant and the other is part of a family that has been the subject of many criminal investigations, Treviño said.

A hearing to determine whether the two should be held in jail until their trial is scheduled for today. They will be charged with attempted murder, aggravated robbery, aggravated sexual assault and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.

"We are going to make a personal case for these two individuals to be kept behind bars until their trial," the sheriff said.

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Andres R. Martinez covers law enforcement and general assignments for The Monitor. He can be reached at (956) 683-4434.



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