Woman killed by gunshot fired from apartment next door, police say
AUSTIN, Texas - Austin Police continue to investigate a shooting that left a woman dead inside her apartment on November 16.
Just after 4 a.m., police were called to the 1900 block of Rutland Drive in North Austin for reports of a shooting.
When officers arrived, they found a woman on the ground inside an apartment with a gunshot wound. About 30 minutes after police arrived, she was pronounced dead at the scene, after lifesaving measures were attempted.
In the apartment next door to where the woman died, a man living there, 36-year-old Noah Mata, was questioned and detained.
The investigation revealed Mata and three men were looking at a gun in Mata's apartment. Mata said he wanted to take a picture of the gun and after doing so, holstered it in his waistband. One of the men tried to get the gun back from Mata. After he got it back, he shot at Mata and missed.
In the next door apartment, a man was cleaning his room when he heard the shot. He went to check on his roommate. Jessica Shaw, 46, who was watching television. She stood up to tell him something hit her in the chest, and then she collapsed, according to the police affidavit.
Mata was arrested and charged with 1st degree aggravated robbery and was booked into the Travis County Jail. He is being held on a $20,000 bond.
He told police he did not know the names of the three men he was with. However, one had been living with him for about a week. The two others are considered acquaintances of the one living with Mata. After the shooting, he told police he was surprised he was not hit and he left the apartment and met up with two of the men who were in the apartment, not the one who fired the gun, at the 7-11 across the street.
In a news conference, police said Shaw was homeless and was visiting a friend at the time of the shooting.
This is the 62nd homicide of 2024, according to Austin Police.
Anyone with any information is asked to contact the Austin Police Department at 512-974-TIPS. You may submit your tip anonymously through the Capital Area Crime Stoppers Program by visiting austincrimestoppers.org or by calling 512-472-8477.
A reward up to $1,000 may be available for any information that leads to an arrest. This case is being investigated as Austin's 62nd homicide of 2024.