13-Year-Old Killed and Her Friend Wounded in Shooting as They Walked Home from School

A Texas man who allegedly shot two 13-year-old girls Friday as they walked home from school, killing one and wounding the other, was arrested Sunday, PEOPLE confirms. Police say Kody Lott, 20, allegedly shot Lauren Landavazo and Makayla Smith in an alleyway in Wichita Falls. Landavazo died and Smith is in stable condition, Sgt. Harold McClure of the Wichita Falls police tells PEOPLE.
The suspect was at large for two days, but on Sunday, Lott was pulled over following a citizen tip when his vehicle matched the suspect's description, according to a Wichita Falls police statement. He was initially arrested on charges of possession of a prohibited weapon; he allegedly confessed to the shooting while being questioned in the police station, according to the statement.
Lott's alleged motive is still unknown, McClure tells PEOPLE.
Lott is currently in the Wichita County Jail on charges of murder, aggravated assault and possession of a prohibited weapon, according to the statement. His bail was expected to be set at $4 million, police Chief Manuel Borrego told the Times Record News It was not immediately clear if Lott had entered a plea or retained an attorney.

Both girls were eighth grade students at McNiel Middle School, Wichita Falls Independent School District Superintendent Michael Kuhrt confirmed in a Facebook Post.

"As a district, we are saddened by this senseless act of violence and our thoughts and prayers are with all of those involved," Kuhrt said.

• Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

A GoFundMe page devoted to Landavazo says, "She would light up the room with her smile that never left her face. She was loved by everyone. She was energetic, smart, caring, fun loving, and overall an angel. The world will not be the same without her."

According to Smith's brother, Tre'vion Elliot, who spoke with theTimes Record News, the pair were "best friends" who regularly walked home from school together because they live in the same neighborhood.

Elliot told the paper he had heard that before she fell to the ground, Smith ran to tell other students behind them to run away.

On Saturday, friends and family of both girls held a memorial near where the shooting took place, and a local Sam's Club held a cookout and fundraiser to benefit Landavazo's family, the Times Record News reports.

Comments

Russia Deploys S-400 Systems to Russia, NATO Has Heart Attack

Our day job is to read about Russia-related stuff and then write about it. So imagine our surprise when we learned that "a NATO air chief says he's concerned by Russia's increasing deployment of surface-to-air missile systems in and around Europe." That's huge! Russia deployed the S-400 to Prague? When did this happen? And what is Russia hoping to gain by deploying surface-to-air systems into the heart of NATO-controlled Europe? We had so many questions in need of answers. Originally appeared at russia-insider. loading... In recent years, the Russian military has deployed S-300 and S-400 surface-to-air missile (SAM) systems not only within Russia and Kaliningrad, the Russian city in a territory between Poland and Lithuania, but Crimea and areas encircling the Ukraine, and even Latakia, Syria. A lot of redundant information here. Let's help our friends at Military.com: After editing out the decorative bullshit, we get: In recent years, ...

Best Available Evidence: Hillary Clinton Has Parkinson's

Clinton has been using her "dehydration" story for years. This time it won't work. The media is already working around the clock to hush up questions about Hillary's rapidly deteriorating health. She overheated has allergies pneumonia! She'll be back on her feet soon, citizen. End of discussion. Anyone who says otherwise is a Looney Tune. (Remember that just a week ago the media shamed anyone who even suggested that Hillary Clinton might be sick.) We don't buy it . Commenting on Clinton's latest "medical episode", Dr. Zuhdi Jasser M.D. observed : “What she had was a syncopal episode. She passed out. That’s either cardiovascular or neurologic. Now, her team wants us to believe it is dehydration. She didn’t appear to be dehydrated and that doesn’t get fixed in 90 minutes.” There's a very good reason why Bill has already replaced his wife on the campaign trail : Hillary Clinton is suffering from advanced stages of Parkinson's. And it...

Two Officers Dead, One injured in Palm Springs Shooting–Suspect at Large

The suspect in the killing of two police officers Saturday afternoon allegedly told his father he wanted to kill cops moments before the gunfire began. Frances Serrano, who lives directly across the street from where the shooting took place, spoke to the father of the suspected shooter moments before the incident. The father told Serrano that his son, who has mental issues, had a gun and wanted to shoot police officers. “He came over and asked for help,” she said. Serrano called the police and the father walked back toward his house. Soon after, Serrano heard gunshots. 2 Officers Killed, 1 Wounded In Palm Springs Shooting; Suspect At Large Update from Associated Press: PALM SPRINGS, Calif. (AP) — The Latest on the shooting of three police officers in Palm Springs. (all times local): 6:45 p.m. Police Chief Bryan Reyes says SWAT officers have surrounded a house in Palm Springs, California where the man who fatally shot two officers may still be inside. Reyes says h...

BREAKING WORLDWIDE

Search This Blog