Erika Benitez-Romero was born on September 9, 1988, in Cutzamala de Pinzón, a town in the state of Guerrero, Mexico. At 26 years old, she was a young Hispanic woman living in Houston, Texas, where her life was tragically cut short in the spring of 2015.
On the morning of Wednesday, May 13, 2015, a neighbor heard the sound of gunshots coming from the home where Erika lived on Feldspar Street in the Spring Branch neighborhood of northwest Houston. A call was placed to 9-1-1 at approximately 8:55 a.m. When Houston Fire Department paramedics and Houston Police Department (HPD) officers arrived at the residence in the 6700 block of Feldspar, they made a devastating discovery. Inside, they found Erika and a man, later identified as 41-year-old Rutilo Maldonado Aguirre, both suffering from gunshot wounds to the head.
Erika was rushed to Memorial Hermann Hospital at the Texas Medical Center, but her injuries were too severe, and she was pronounced dead.
Aguirre was transported to Ben Taub General Hospital in critical condition with what appeared to be a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Tragically, first responders also found the couple's one-year-old child inside the home. The infant was physically unharmed and was quickly placed in the care of relatives.
The investigation was handled by the HPD Homicide Division. Detectives reported that Aguirre had called his own sister shortly before the shooting, telling her that "she needs to come over because something has happened." Based on the evidence at the scene and this call, investigators quickly concluded that the incident was an attempted murder-suicide. A report from a family violence center later clarified that Aguirre was Erika's ex-boyfriend and that he had shot her in the bedroom of their home before turning the gun on himself. Police noted that despite the couple having lived at the address for nine years, there had been no prior calls to the home for domestic violence.
The case was investigated by HPD Senior Police Officers X. Avila and L. Bailey. While news reports at the time listed Aguirre in critical condition, public records do not show any subsequent charges or court proceedings against him in Harris County. This strongly indicates he did not survive his injuries, and the case was likely closed with the death of the sole suspect.
In the days following her death, Erika's family and friends gathered to mourn their loss. A viewing was held on the evening of May 19, 2015, at Funeraria Del Angel on the North Freeway in Houston. A funeral service took place at the same location the following morning, on May 20, where loved ones said their final goodbyes to a young woman whose life ended in an act of violence.
As of the initial investigation in May 2015, the Houston Police Department considered the case a murder-suicide. With the perpetrator believed to be deceased, the investigation is no longer active. No further suspects were sought, and the case is considered closed by law enforcement.
