Alleged gunman in shooting at flea market surrenders

The man wanted in a shooting that injured four and killed one at a Pearland flea market turned himself in to police on Tuesday.

David Negrete, 19, surrendered to the Brazoria County Jail around 10 a.m., said Chad Rogers, spokesman for the Pearland Police Department.

Negrete has been charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon in connection with the Sunday shooting at Cole’s Antique Village and Flea Market, Rogers said.

Brazoria County District Attorney Tom Selleck said no one had reached out to prosecutors claiming to represent any of the defendants in the shooting.

Witnesses told detectives multiple people opened fire around 5:30 p.m. Sunday outside the flea market, at 1014 North Main St., south of Beltway 8 South. Detectives say shots were fired from at least two handguns, though they weren’t yet sure exactly how many bullets were fired.

The shooting injured a 10year-old boy, who later died, a 14year-old girl and a 37-year-old man, who were bystanders, Rogers said. Two other teenagers were also injured and taken into surgery after the shooting.

The 10-year-old was identified as Francisco Duarte, according to the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences. He died in a hospital emergency room from a gunshot wound to the chest.

A GoFundMe page in that person’s name in Spanish says his mother worked at the flea market. A message written to the page was not immediately returned.

One of the teenagers wounded in the shooting, Cruz Meza, was charged with tampering with physical evidence and making a false statement to a peace officer. He was pictured in a booking photo wearing a hospital gown with his arm in a sling. His relationship to the other people charged was unclear.

Another woman, Julianna Espino, 18, has been charged with tampering with physical evidence, a felony, and making a false statement to a peace officer, a misdemeanor.

Investigators identified Negrete in connection to the shooting, and Gov. Greg Abbott announced a $15,000 reward for information leading to his arrest.

Elizabeth Conley/Staff photographer Officers with the Brazoria County Sheriff ’s Department block the road leading to Cole’s Flea Market, where five people were shot, one fatally, Sunday in Pearland.