A 42-year-old Texas man is going through a homicide cost within the capturing of an 11-year-old boy after the sufferer and his mates banged on the suspect’s door late Saturday evening in what police described as a “ding-dong-ditch” prank that has been trending on TikTok and different social media platforms, authorities stated.
The suspect, Leon Gonzalo Jr., was arrested and booked on the Harris County Jail on Tuesday morning, charged with one depend of homicide, based on Harris County courtroom data.
The capturing unfolded round 10:55 p.m. on Saturday at a house in southeast Houston, based on the Houston Police Division.
The kid, who police initially stated was 10 years outdated, was pronounced useless at a hospital on Sunday afternoon, based on a press release launched by police. The boy’s identify was being withheld by police pending an post-mortem.
“Officers had been informed the male was ringing doorbells of properties within the space and operating away. A witness acknowledged the male was operating from a home, after ringing the doorbell, simply previous to struggling a gunshot wound,” Houston murder detectives stated.
Reserving photograph of Leon Gonzalo Jr.
Houston Police Division
It remained unclear if Gonzalo is the proprietor of the house the place the door-kicking prank occurred, or whether or not he simply lived there.
The prank allegedly dedicated in Houston is much like what’s being dubbed the “door-kicking problem,” a nationwide development primarily based on an outdated prank referred to as “ding dong ditch,” by which teams of youngsters document movies of themselves kicking and banging on doorways of properties and residences earlier than operating away after which posting the movies on social media platforms akin to TikTok.
Gonzalo is believed to be the identical individual detained by police within the fast aftermath of Saturday’s capturing. He was launched after being questioned however was detained once more after the kid was pronounced useless at a hospital round 2 p.m. native time on Sunday, Houston police Sgt. Michael Cass stated at a information convention over the weekend.
Cass stated a search warrant was served on the house, and a big variety of weapons had been discovered inside the home.
Cass stated the boy who was shot within the again lived a couple of block from the house.
Murder detectives seek for proof, Sept. 1, 2025, exterior a Houston residence the place an 11-year-old boy was fatally shot after enjoying a door-knocking prank on a neighbor.
KTRK
The sufferer and at the least two of his mates had been going round their neighborhood banging on or kicking doorways and operating away, Cass stated. Cass stated the preliminary info signifies that the victims and his mates ran down the road after banging on the suspect’s door.
“Our witness says the suspect got here out of the door, ran out into the road and was firing down the highway,” Cass stated.
He stated the sufferer was capable of run a couple of block earlier than collapsing on the street.
“In my view, it does not appear like any kind of self-defense,” Cass stated.
The deadly capturing follows a string of incidents throughout the nation related to the door-kicking problem on social media.
In July, a 58-year-old Texas home-owner was arrested and charged with aggravated assault when he allegedly fired a number of rounds at a automobile fleeing his residence in Frisco after somebody banged on the entrance door, based on a press release from the Frisco Police Division.
The driving force of the automobile that was shot at round 10:50 p.m. on July 28 and two passengers contacted police to file a criticism, displaying officers three bullet holes within the automobile, based on police.
“Nevertheless, throughout subsequent interviews, all admitted to ding, dong, ditching in a random neighborhood once they had been confronted by a male with a firearm,” Frisco police stated in a press release.
In June, police in Chandler, Arizona, launched video footage of a bunch of juveniles committing the “door-kicking problem,” alleging the group pulled the prank on the identical residence at the least 18 instances, prompting the home-owner to maneuver out.
This can be a creating story. Please examine again for updates.
