Buda Shooting Reveals Wider Austin Attacks

Buda police said on May 22 that a shooting at a Main Street business in Buda was part of the same chain of violence that Austin police had already been investigating as a weekend spree of shootings, car thefts and robberies across South and East Austin. The Buda incident happened just after 5 a.m. on May 17, when officers responded to a burglary alarm and found shell casings and bullet damage at an unoccupied storefront, according to Buda police. Austin police have said the broader case spans 12 shootings between May 16 and May 17 and left four people injured. Three suspects — ages 15, 16 and 17 — were arrested in the Austin investigation, police said. ### How did a Buda storefront become part of the Austin case? The 500 block of Main Street in Buda entered the case after officers found broken glass, bullet casings and damage to the windows and walls of a business later identified by KVUE as Siren Beauty + Wellness. Buda police said no one was inside and no injuries were reported in that shooting. (kvue.com) Matt Schima, the public information officer for Buda police, told KVUE that investigators used physical evidence and Flock Safety camera data to connect the Buda shooting to the Austin shootings. Buda police said the case is being investigated as deadly conduct, a third-degree felony, and said additional charges could follow. (kvue.com) ### What had Austin police already tied together before Buda announced the link? Austin police said on May 18 that detectives had arrested three suspects in connection with shootings, stolen vehicles and related violent crimes that occurred across Austin between May 16 and May 17. The department identified the oldest suspect as 17-year-old Cristian Fajardo Mondragon and said the other two suspects were 15 and 16. (kvue.com) Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis said the weekend violence included at least 12 separate shootings. Police said the incidents struck apartment buildings, homes, businesses and two Austin Fire Department stations, and that investigators believed the shootings were a mix of random and targeted attacks. (austintexas.gov) ### What does the timeline show about how the attacks unfolded? The Austin American-Statesman reported that the sequence began on May 16, when a teenager entered Central Texas Gun Works on West Ben White Boulevard, grabbed a black 9mm Glock pistol and fled in a stolen Hyundai Sonata. The newspaper said that over the next roughly 24 hours, shootings hit a trailer home in Southeast Austin, apartments at Whisper Hollow and Montopolis Drive, and other locations across the city. (fox7austin.com) Austin police said four people were injured during the 12 shootings. Fox 7, citing police, reported that at least five cars were stolen during the spree and that suspects may have switched vehicles multiple times. ### Why did police say the Buda connection mattered to the investigation? (statesman.com) Buda police said the city’s evidence added another location and another offense to what had first been described publicly as an Austin case. KVUE reported that Schima said investigators knew the vehicle involved, and that helped tie the Buda shooting to the Austin incidents. (fox7austin.com) Becky Torres, the owner of Siren Beauty + Wellness, told KVUE that 12 rounds were fired into her building. She said she had initially feared she was being targeted and later said she was relieved to learn police had connected the damage to the wider case. (kvue.com) ### What remains unresolved? Austin police said on May 18 that a motive had not been determined. Chief Davis said she did not know “what motive would drive anybody” to drive through multiple parts of the city firing at locations, according to the Statesman’s timeline. Buda police said the investigation remains ongoing and asked anyone with information to contact Detective Raul Valdez or submit an anonymous tip through Hays County Crime Stoppers. (kvue.com) Austin police have also kept the broader shootings case open as prosecutors review charges tied to the May 16-17 attacks. (austintexas.gov)