Criminals evade authorities after fatal shooting near Alton
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July 14, 2009 - 7:52 AM
Jared Taylor
The Monitor
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>> Anyone with information about Espinoza’s slaying is urged to contact Hidalgo County Crime Stoppers at (956) 668-8477.



NEAR ALTON — A 31-year-old man was shot to death and his neighbor took a bullet in the groin early Tuesday morning during a break-in near Alton.

The home invasion at the house of Gerardo Espinoza happened about midnight Monday at 2700 Limon Drive, near the intersection of 5 Mile Line and La Homa Roads, said Hidalgo County Sheriff Lupe Treviño.

At least two men broke through the gate on Espinoza’s driveway, stormed into the man’s house and fatally shot him, authorities said.

Deputies responded to a call of shots fired at 12:19 a.m. Tuesday. After arriving on the scene, they found Espinoza’s body and about 2,000 pounds of marijuana stashed inside his garage.

Soon after authorities arrived, a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper who was unaware of the slaying attempted to conduct a traffic stop on a northbound pickup truck registered to Espinoza, the sheriff said.

“It was purely a coincidence,â€