Austin Man Charged in Deadly Target Parking Lot Shooting Spree That Left Three Dead

AUSTIN, Texas – On Monday, August 11, 2025, at approximately 2:15 p.m., Austin Police Department (APD) officers responded to multiple reports of shootings at the Target parking lot at 8601 Research Boulevard northbound.

Officers arrived to find 24-year-old Hector Leopoldo Martinez-Machuca in the parking lot. Martinez-Machuca, a Target employee, was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced deceased at 3:01 p.m. Officers also located 65-year-old Adam Chow, his wife, and their 4-year-old granddaughter. Adam Chow and the child were pronounced deceased on scene at 2:39 p.m. and 2:50 p.m., respectively. Chow’s wife sustained minor injuries.

Homicide Detectives and Crime Scene Specialists determined that 32-year-old Ethan Nieneker randomly attacked Martinez-Machuca as he was collecting shopping carts, shooting and killing him. Nieneker then fired at a black Jeep Cherokee before approaching a gray Toyota 4-Runner, where he shot Chow in the driver’s seat and the child in the back seat. He pushed Chow’s wife from the vehicle and fled in the stolen Toyota.

At approximately 2:20 p.m., Nieneker approached a water truck in the 7800 block of Mopac Expressway, assaulted the driver, and attempted to steal the vehicle but was unsuccessful. He then chased a male at gunpoint before returning to the stolen 4-Runner and driving away.

Minutes later, at 2:25 p.m., APD received reports of a multi-vehicle crash involving the stolen 4-Runner, which struck a Volkswagen and landed on top of an Infiniti SUV. Nieneker assaulted the female Volkswagen driver, stole her vehicle, and drove off.

By 2:34 p.m., he had attempted to break into a Waymo vehicle but failed, returning to the stolen Volkswagen and leaving the area. At 2:37 p.m., an acquaintance reported that Nieneker had thrown a brick through his residence on La Casa Drive.

At 2:58 p.m., APD received a call of a naked male in a backyard in the 2400 block of La Casa Drive. Nieneker was seen running into a portable toilet before leaving on foot. Officers located him walking naked on Montclaire Street. After refusing commands, he was tased and taken into custody at 3:06 p.m. Clothing matching surveillance footage was later recovered from the portable toilet.

In less than one hour, Nieneker is accused of killing three people, injuring others, and causing multiple vehicle crashes. He has been charged with two counts of Capital Murder for the deaths of the 4-year-old and Adam Chow, as well as First-Degree Felony Murder for Martinez-Machuca.

Anyone with photos, videos, or evidence is urged to contact APD at 512-974-TIPS or submit tips anonymously through the Capital Area Crime Stoppers Program at austincrimestoppers.org or 512-472-8477. A reward of up to $1,000 may be available.

This incident marks Austin’s 39th, 40th, and 41st homicides of 2025.