Snapchat post nets murder charge for Magnolia HS student
An incoming Magnolia High School senior has been charged with murder in a deadly drug deal after he allegedly drove by the crime scene and filmed himself on Snapchat, prosecutors said this week.
William Underwood, 17, was arrested and remains in Harris County Jail in lieu of a $250,000 bond. He is accused of fatally shooting Ryan Joshua Bates while buying marijuana from him at a Houston-area apartment last month, police said.
Underwood told investigators after his arrest that he thought Bates was going to shoot him.
“He’s extremely upset about the situation,” said Underwood’s attorney, Jed Silverman. “His family supports him and is behind him … and we look forward to receiving the evidence in this case.”
The shooting was first reported to the Harris County Sheriff’s Office at 2:30 p.m. July 16 at 8750 Point Park Drive, near U.S. 290 and Texas 6 in the Copperfield area.
A witness identified Underwood by the nickname “Ziggy” and said he was looking into cars in the parking lot moments before the shooting. The witness asked him if he was lost, and he responded by pulling out a Taser with a smirk, prosecutors said.
The witness then saw a black car pull up to the parking lot and saw Underwood lean into the driver’s window. The witness heard the car horn honk several times “like a stutter,” prosecutors said.
Underwood was then seen getting into the car and shocking the driver with a Taser, prosecutors
said. The car door closed as Underwood fired multiple shots at the driver, prosecutors said. A second man, who was not been identified, drove into the parking lot wearing a hoodie pulled tight around his face.
The second man was seen entering Bates’ vehicle and leaving the scene with “something” in his hand, prosecutors said. That man has not been identified.
During the investigation, detectives identified Underwood through his Snapchat username, Underwood910. A witness provided investigators with video footage from the day of the shooting that reportedly showed Underwood driving by the crime scene with law enforcement in the background.
“The officer’s county vehicle was visible in the video as he passes by,” prosecutors said.
On Aug. 8, deputies took Underwood into custody on a warrant, and he confessed to the shooting in a sworn statement, prosecutors said.
He said he coordinated the drug deal with Bates over Snapchat, and they agreed to meet at the apartment complex.
Underwood then confessed to investigators that he shot the driver, prosecutors said. He claimed that he thought Bates was going to rob him when he pulled out his money.
Underwood said he saw a Taser in the cup holder and thought Bates would reach for it. He said he grabbed the Taser and shocked Bates several times. He then said he saw Bates grab a knife. That’s when he pulled a gun from his waistband and shot him three times, prosecutors said.
Underwood said he discarded the gun in a field and fled to his sister’s apartment. He said he started using Snapchat that day as an alibi.