20-Year-Old Man Charged in Deadly May Shooting on Southwest Freeway

HOUSTON, TX – A 20-year-old man has been arrested and charged in connection with the fatal shooting of a man on the Southwest Freeway service road in Houston on May 29, 2025.

Alexis Garcia has been charged with capital murder in the 209th State District Court. He was previously charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and theft stemming from the same incident. Garcia remains in custody at the Harris County Jail.

The victim has been identified as 55-year-old Noel Venero Lopez.

Houston Police Department Homicide detectives reported that officers responded to a crash involving a gray Dodge Charger and a black Toyota Prius at approximately 6:35 p.m. in the 11700 block of the Southwest Freeway. Witnesses stated that after the crash, the male driver of the Dodge, later identified as Garcia, exited his vehicle and briefly interacted with the other driver before walking south toward Wilcrest Drive.

A second witness later told officers they observed a man matching Garcia’s description walk into traffic before hearing a gunshot and seeing a red Hyundai Elantra speed away. The witness then reported that Garcia pointed a gun at him and stole his gray Audi SQ5. The drivers of the Prius and Audi were unharmed. The driver of the Hyundai, later identified as Lopez, suffered a gunshot wound and was transported to Ben Taub General Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.

An alert was issued for the stolen Audi, which was located in Corpus Christi. Local officers found Garcia nearby, armed with a handgun. He was taken into custody.

Garcia was originally charged with aggravated assault and theft on May 30, and after continued investigation, upgraded to capital murder on July 9 following consultation with the Harris County District Attorney’s Office.