Man arrested for woman's murder in East Austin

AUSTIN, Texas - A man has been arrested for the murder of a woman in East Austin on Sunday night.

22-year-old Gonzalo Mendoza-Gonzalez has been charged with first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of 22-year-old Samantha Fernandez.

The shooting

Austin police investigating latest homicide

Officers are investigating the death of a woman in East Austin.

The backstory:

On April 27, at around 10:16 p.m., Austin 911 received multiple calls about a shooting at The Jordan at Mueller Apartments on Philomena Street off Tilley Street.

When officers arrived, they found an unresponsive woman on the ground in the parking lot with an apparent gunshot wound. The woman, later identified as Fernandez, was pronounced dead at the scene at 10:42 p.m.

The investigation

What we know:

An initial investigation showed that a pickup truck had pulled into the apartment complex's parking lot and Fernandez had come down to meet them.

Someone in the truck, later identified as Mendoza-Gonzalez, then shot and killed Fernandez before the truck fled the scene, says APD.

The truck eventually broke down in Kerrville, over two hours west of the scene, and Mendoza-Gonzalez was eventually taken into custody.

What you can do:

This is being investigated as Austin's 21st homicide of 2025.

Anyone with information should contact the Austin Police Department at 512-974-TIPS. You may submit your tip anonymously through the Capital Area Crime Stoppers Program by clicking here or calling 512-472-8477.