Police said a man opened fire at four cheerleaders after their practice.
Two Texas cheerleaders were shot after one of them said they had mistakenly got into the wrong car in a parking lot after practice, authorities said.
One of the victims was treated and released at the scene Tuesday morning and the second cheerleader was helicoptered to a hospital in critical condition, according to Elgin police.
Pedro Tello Rodriguez Jr., 25, has been charged with deadly conduct, a third-degree felony, police said. Rodriguez allegedly fled the scene after the shooting and was arrested at his home, according to court documents.
Pedro Tello Rodriguez Jr. has been charged in connection with the shooting of two cheerleaders in a grocery store parking lot in Elgin, Texas, on April 18, 2023. Elgin Police Department
Heather Roth, a cheerleader with the Woodlands Elite Cheer Co., said on Instagram Live that she and three other cheerleaders had finished practice when they went to a carpool lot just after midnight Tuesday.
Roth said she got out of her friend's car and opened the door to a car she thought was her own, but a man was in the passenger seat. She said she got out of the car and back into her friend's car.
When the man approached their vehicle, Roth said she rolled down the window to apologize, and the man started shooting.
Elgin is about 25 miles east of Austin.
Payton Washington was injured in a shooting when one of her cheerleading teammates accidentally tried to enter the wrong car in a grocery store parking lot in Elgin, Texas, on April 18, 2023. Baylor Athletics
One of the injured cheerleaders, Payton Washington, has been accepted to Baylor University and its acrobatics ad tumbling team.
"Payton is a strong young lady; if you know her, you know that about her. I have no doubt she's going to get through this," Fee Mulkey, Baylor's acrobatics and tumbling coach, said in a statement released by the university. "She's an amazing athlete but a better human, and that's why she's a part of our Baylor family. My prayers are with Payton and her teammates that were involved in last night's tragic event, I know mental wounds also leave scars. We want to lift up the athletes and their families during this difficult time. We love Payton and we wish her well as she recovers."
Mulkey said she was on the way to visit Washington in the hospital.
PlebbySpaff on April 19th, 2023 at 10:27 UTC »
That feels pre-meditated at that point? Got in the wrong car, and then they left. But then, the guy gets out of his car, knocks on their window, and then shoots them.
Like…that is a step-by-step thought process. If he just shot at them, that’s still bad, but this is even worse when he gets out of his own car to go to theirs, to then shoot them.
davtruss on April 19th, 2023 at 08:07 UTC »
I'm trying to think of a reason why, if I were sitting in the passenger seat of a car, and a cheerleader opened the driver's door and sat down, I would feel the need to leave the car and shoot at said cheerleader after she exited the vehicle.
I can't think of any.
I'd pay to see the report of the court appointed psychiatrist. There had to be a good story somewhere in dude's mind.
Edit: Just to be clear, there is no reason we know of to excuse this heinous behavior, and if drugs are an issue, they might explain why HE WAS SITTING IN THE PASSENGER SEAT. It's as if he had already done something wrong and was waiting for an excuse to do more harm. But dang that's some bad luck to get behind the wheel of this guy's car.
Big_D_Cyrus on April 19th, 2023 at 07:03 UTC »
This guy was just waiting to murder people