Suspect Arrested in Fatal Shooting at Gulfton Apartment Complex

HOUSTON, Texas — A suspect has been arrested and charged in connection with a fatal shooting earlier this month at an apartment complex in southwest Houston.

According to the Houston Police Department, 30-year-old Gabreal Dechassa Geleta has been charged with murder in the death of 24-year-old Nathaniel Carl Mendez-Ma.

The shooting occurred around noon on April 18, 2026, at an apartment complex located at 6060 Gulfton Street.

Officers responding to the scene found Mendez-Ma unresponsive in the driver’s seat of a vehicle with at least one gunshot wound. Paramedics with the Houston Fire Department pronounced him dead at the scene.

Investigators determined the victim had been parked near the rear of the complex when he was approached and shot by at least one suspect.

Through further investigation, detectives identified Geleta as the suspect. He was arrested on April 24 and booked into the Harris County Jail.

The case remains under investigation.