Latest news with #HarrisCountyDistrictAttorney'sOffice
21-05-2025
- Politics
Charges dropped against conservative activist in Texas over false voter fraud claim
HOUSTON -- Texas prosecutors on Tuesday dropped charges against a prominent conservative activist in Houston related to allegations he had been part of what authorities have called a baseless voter fraud conspiracy theory in which a man was run off the road and held at gunpoint over claims he was holding fraudulent voter ballots. Dr. Steven Hotze, 74, had been facing four charges related to allegedly helping plan an assault against an air conditioner repairman in October 2020. Prosecutors alleged the repairman was run off the road and held at gunpoint by Mark Aguirre, a former Houston police officer. Aguirre had worked for a firm hired by Liberty Center for God and Country, a nonprofit organization that Hotze runs, to pursue a voter fraud investigation. Aguirre had claimed the repairman was the mastermind of the voter fraud scheme and that the man's truck had been filled with fraudulent ballots when Aguirre ran his SUV into it, according to authorities. Police who responded to the incident searched the repairman's truck and found only air conditioning parts and tools, prosecutors said. Hotze was charged with four counts — aggravated robbery with a deadly weapon, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, engaging in organized crime and unlawful restraint. On Tuesday, the Harris County District Attorney's Office dropped all four counts against Hotze and three of the five counts against Aguirre, who is still facing charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and unlawful restraint. 'This deeply troubling case shows how toxic conspiracy theories can fuel real-world violence that endangers people in our community,' Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare said in a statement. 'We look forward to vigorously prosecuting the remaining charges in this case that stand up to legal scrutiny.' Jared Woodfill, Hotze's attorney, said he was surprised but pleased by the dismissal of the charges. 'It's been a long four-year journey for Dr. Hotze. It cost him a lot of money. Obviously, they tried to destroy his reputation through the negative publicity. But in the end, justice was served and everything's been dismissed,' Woodfill said. Terry Yates, an attorney for Aguirre, did not immediately return a call or email seeking comment. A conservative power broker, Hotze has a long history of filing election-related lawsuits, including unsuccessfully suing to stop the extension of early voting in Texas during the 2022 election. He also sued officials in Harris County to limit in-person and absentee voting, making allegations without evidence that Democrats were engaged in 'ballot harvesting' by gathering votes from individuals who are homeless or elderly. Woodfill said Hotze continues to believe that voter fraud is taking place in Harris County, the state's most populous county and where Houston is located. 'I think everybody will tell you there's voter fraud. Just the question is how much,' Woodfill said. Texas has tightened its voter laws in recent years and increased penalties that Democrats and opponents say are attempts to suppress turnout among Black and Latino voters. Elections in Harris County, a Democratic stronghold, have been heavily scrutinized in recent years by GOP lawmakers, including Gov. Greg Abbott, after problems with ballot and worker shortages, long lines and ballots that were not counted the day of the election. In 2023, Abbott signed a bill that removed Harris County's elections administrator and transferred the responsibility to other local officials. Earlier this month, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in a rural county southwest of San Antonio as part of a widening elections investigation.
Yahoo
17-05-2025
- Yahoo
A war hero was killed in a Texas parking lot. Why was the gunman not arrested?
For more than five years, Abdul Rahman Waziri put his life on the line to protect U.S. Green Berets. He was a member of an elite unit of Afghans trained to detect hidden explosives — considered the tip of the tip of the spear in America's bloody fight against the Taliban. Waziri was also one of the lucky ones. Unlike many other Afghans who worked for the U.S. military, he made it out of the country during America's chaotic withdrawal in 2021. He settled in Houston with his wife, where they were raising their two young girls. But on April 27, Waziri, 31, was fatally shot outside his apartment complex in a dispute about parking. The shock and heartbreak felt by his family has been compounded by what they consider to be a baffling decision by law enforcement to release the gunman with no charges. 'It's ridiculous,' said Waziri's brother, Abdullah Khan. 'In Afghanistan, we have no law at all. But if someone gets murdered, the person will not be free.' Houston police said in a statement that following the shooting, officers at the scene were approached by a man who identified himself as the shooter and said he and Waziri were 'arguing over parking.' Officers interviewed the man and took possession of his gun but then let him go. 'After consulting with the Harris County District Attorney's Office, the male was released and [Houston Police Department] investigators will continue their investigation,' the police added. They have not released his name. Three weeks later, no action has been taken. The authorities have not made any other public statements despite mounting pressure from the area's growing Afghan community as well as Green Berets who worked with Waziri. 'He was a lion of a man but also one of the most gentle warriors I have ever seen,' said Ben Hoffman, a former Green Beret who went on missions with Waziri in 2019. 'This guy risked his life for us,' Hoffman added. 'And for him to survive all of that and make it out of Afghanistan and then just die in cold blood outside an apartment complex in Houston — what is going on here?' Damali Keith, a spokeswoman for the Harris County District Attorney's Office, said: 'We are still awaiting additional information from investigators before making a charging decision.' The Houston Police Department did not respond to a request for comment. The shooting took place just before 9:10 p.m. at the Gables at Richmond Apartments, where Waziri had been living since last year. A surveillance camera captured Waziri driving into the parking area in a white Toyota Camry. He pulled the car to a stop and put on his blinkers. According to his brother, he was coming home from the gym. Waziri was likely going to grab his mail and then park in a spot closer to his apartment, his brother said. But about 30 seconds after Waziri's car pulled in, a black Kia sedan turned into the parking lot. It came to a stop directly behind Waziri's vehicle, according to the surveillance footage, which was provided by the family's attorney. What happened next is not entirely clear. The area where the cars were stopped can't be seen on the video because of a structure looming over the parking lot. But Waziri can be seen walking away from his car, with the other man trailing behind him. They stop and exchange words while pointing in the direction of their vehicles. Then Waziri continues walking away and the other man returns to where their cars were parked. Seconds later, Waziri looks back in that direction and then walks back toward his car. It's unclear what happens over the next 55 seconds. But near the end, the other man's shoes can be seen moving in the direction of his car and then back toward Waziri's. Shortly afterward, the other man was captured on the video walking away from the scene. 'It shocks me that this man was not arrested,' said the Waziri family attorney, Omar Khawaja. Khawaja said he spoke to a witness and escorted that person to police headquarters five days after the shooting. The witness provided the following account to investigators, according to Khawaja. After the initial confrontation captured on video, the other man began to kick Waziri's car. That's what prompted Waziri to walk back to the vehicles. A physical struggle ensued, with Waziri getting the upper hand, and then the other man returned to his car and retrieved a gun. Waziri put his hands up and said something along the lines of, 'Don't shoot,' but the gunman opened fire anyway. NBC News' efforts to reach the witness were not successful. Police said Waziri was shot 'more than one time,' and officers discovered his body lying next to his white Toyota. Khawaja, the family's attorney, said Waziri was unarmed at the time; he owned a gun but it was at home. Khawaja said he is aware of at least one other witness who is too afraid to come forward. 'You can imagine the kind of paralysis and fear the community feels,' Khawaja said. 'The guy who just killed this man is still living in the community and with no consequences whatsoever. That's a chilling effect on witnesses.' Under Texas law, a person has a right to use deadly force if it is believed to be 'immediately necessary' to protect against another's 'use or attempted use of unlawful force.' David Crump, a professor at the University of Houston Law Center, said another factor looms large in a prosecutor's decision on whether to bring charges: Did the person initiate the altercation? 'If someone initiates a quarrel and ends up shooting a guy who was unarmed, it seems strange to me that the shooter was not arrested,' Crump said. 'But I have to add that we don't know all the facts.' The killing has sparked protests in Houston, where thousands of Afghans have settled after fleeing their homeland. It also prompted some of Waziri's Green Beret friends to write letters to Houston Mayor John Whitmore demanding justice. One of those retired Green Berets, Vince Leyva, said in an interview that he used to call Waziri a 'gentle giant.' 'I'm 6-foot-1 and he towered over me,' said Leyva. 'But he was so calm, so well-spoken. He was not a guy who would argue, which is why this really baffles me.' Waziri and the other Afghan members of the National Mine Reduction Group, or NMRG, would be out in front of U.S. Special Forces members during missions. Their job was to identify and disable improvised explosive devices, but they sometimes found themselves in firefights during Taliban ambushes. Beyond the risk of getting killed on the job, they were frequently hunted down by insurgents. 'Everyone knew who the NMRG were, especially the Taliban,' said Leyva, who helped train the Afghans. 'They always had targets on their backs, but they were proud to do their job.' Waziri was so good at it that he was selected to be an instructor, Leyva said, a role he had until U.S. forces withdrew from Afghanistan in August 2021. Waziri was looking out for others even in his last few days in his homeland as the Taliban swiftly seized major cities, according to Shireen Connor, who was part of a grassroots team of veterans and others who helped to coordinate the evacuations of Afghans. 'The streets of Kabul were engulfed in panic,' Connor said in a letter to the Houston mayor. 'In the midst of this, Mr. Waziri, a high-profile Taliban target, was setting up safe houses not for himself but for our evacuees. Always helping other people in the face of significant personal peril. How do you define a human being like this?' After the shooting, Waziri's wife and two young daughters — 4-year-old Bahar and her 9-month-old baby sister, Zoya — flew to Florida to stay with his brother. 'His wife is in very bad condition now,' said Khan, the brother. 'She's still panicking.' Khan and Waziri's wife have yet to tell Bahar that her father is dead. And so, nearly every day, the little girl asks her mother and uncle a string of heartbreaking questions. Where is my father? When is he coming home? Please, can you just call him? This article was originally published on
NBC News
17-05-2025
- NBC News
A war hero was killed in a Texas parking lot. Why was the gunman not arrested?
For more than five years, Abdul Rahman Waziri put his life on the line to protect U.S. Green Berets. He was a member of an elite unit of Afghans trained to detect hidden explosives — considered the tip of the tip of the spear, in America's bloody fight against the Taliban. Waziri was also one of the lucky ones. Unlike many other Afghans who worked for the U.S. military, he made it out of the country during America's chaotic withdrawal in 2021. He settled in Houston with his wife, where they were raising their two young girls. But on April 27, Waziri, 31, was fatally shot outside his apartment complex in a dispute about parking. The shock and heartbreak felt by his family has been compounded by what they consider to be a baffling decision by law enforcement to release the gunman with no charges. 'It's ridiculous,' said Waziri's brother, Abdullah Khan. 'In Afghanistan, we have no law at all. But if someone gets murdered, the person will not be free.' Houston police said in a statement that, following the shooting, officers at the scene were approached by a man who identified himself as the shooter and said he and Waziri were 'arguing over parking.' Officers interviewed the man and took possession of his gun but then let him go. 'After consulting with the Harris County District Attorney's Office, the male was released and [Houston Police Department] investigators will continue their investigation,' the police added. They have not released his name. Three weeks later, no action has been taken. The authorities have not made any other public statements despite mounting pressure from the area's growing Afghan community as well as Green Berets who worked with Waziri. 'He was a lion of a man but also one of the most gentle warriors I have ever seen,' said Ben Hoffman, a former Green Beret who went on missions with Waziri in 2019. 'This guy risked his life for us,' Hoffman added. 'And for him to survive all of that and make it out of Afghanistan and then just die in cold blood outside an apartment complex in Houston — what is going on here?' Damali Keith, a spokeswoman for the Harris County District Attorney's Office, said: 'We are still awaiting additional information from investigators before making a charging decision.' The Houston Police Department did not respond to a request for comment. What surveillance video shows The shooting took place just before 9:10 p.m. at the Gables at Richmond Apartments, where Waziri had been living since last year. A surveillance camera captured Waziri driving into the parking area in a white Toyota Camry. He pulled the car to a stop and put on his blinkers. According to his brother, he was coming home from the gym. Waziri was likely going to grab his mail and then park in a spot closer to his apartment, his brother said. But about 30 seconds after Waziri's car pulled in, a black Kia sedan turned into the parking lot. It came to a stop directly behind Waziri's vehicle, according to the surveillance footage, which was provided by the family's attorney. What happened next is not entirely clear. The area where the cars were stopped can't be seen on the video because of a structure looming over the parking lot. But Waziri can be seen walking away from his car, with the other man trailing behind him. They stop and exchange words while pointing in the direction of their vehicles. Then Waziri continues walking away and the other man returns to where their cars were parked. Seconds later, Waziri looks back in that direction and then walks back toward his car. It's unclear what happens over the next 55 seconds. But near the end, the other man's shoes can be seen moving in the direction of his car and then back toward Waziri's. Shortly afterward, the other man was captured on the video walkingaway from the scene. 'It shocks me that this man was not arrested,' said the Waziri family attorney, Omar Khawaja. Khawaja said he spoke to a witness and escorted that person to police headquarters five days after the shooting. The witness provided the following account to investigators, according to Khawaja. After the initial confrontation captured on video, the other man began to kick Waziri's car. That's what prompted Waziri to walk back to the vehicles. A physical struggle ensued, with Waziri getting the upper hand, and then the other man returned to his car and retrieved a gun. Waziri put his hands up and said something along the lines of, 'Don't shoot,' but the gunman opened fire anyway. NBC News' efforts to reach the witness were not successful. Police said Waziri was shot 'more than one time,' and officers discovered his body lying next to his white Toyota. Khajawa, the family's attorney, said Waziri was unarmed at the time; he owned a gun but it was at home. Khajawa said he is aware of at least one other witness who is too afraid to come forward. 'You can imagine the kind of paralysis and fear the community feels,' Khawaja said. 'The guy who just killed this man is still living in the community and with no consequences whatsoever. That's a chilling effect on witnesses.' What the law says Under Texas law, a person has a right to use deadly force if it is believed to be " immediately necessary" to protect against another's "use or attempted use of unlawful force." David Crump, a professor at the University of Houston Law Center, said another factor looms large in a prosecutor's decision on whether to bring charges: Did the person initiate the altercation? 'If someone initiates a quarrel and ends up shooting a guy who was unarmed, it seems strange to me that the shooter was not arrested,' Crump said. 'But I have to add that we don't know all the facts.' The killing has sparked protests in Houston, where thousands of Afghans have settled after fleeing their homeland. It also prompted some of Waziri's Green Beret friends to write letters to Houston Mayor John Whitmore demanding justice. One of those retired Green Berets, Vince Leyva, said in an interview that he used to call Waziri a 'gentle giant.' 'I'm 6-foot-1 and he towered over me,' said Leyva. 'But he was so calm, so well spoken. He was not a guy who would argue, which is why this really baffles me.' Waziri and the other Afghan members of the National Mine Reduction Group, or NMRG, would be out in front of U.S. Special Forces members during missions. Their job was to identify and disable improvised explosive devices, but they sometimes found themselves in firefights during Taliban ambushes. Beyond the risk of getting killed on the job, they were frequently hunted down by insurgents. "Everyone knew who the NMRG were, especially the Taliban," said Leyva, who helped train the Afghans. "They always had targets on their backs, but they were proud to do their job." Waziri was so good at it that he was selected to be an instructor, Leyva said, a role he had until U.S. forces withdrew from Afghanistan in August 2021. Waziri was looking out for others even in his last few days in his homeland as the Taliban swiftly seized major cities, according to Shireen Connor, who was part of a grassroots team of veterans and others who helped to coordinate the evacuations of Afghans. 'The streets of Kabul were engulfed in panic,' Connor said in a letter to the Houston mayor. 'In the midst of this, Mr. Waziri, a high-profile Taliban target, was setting up safe houses not for himself but for our evacuees. Always helping other people in the face of significant personal peril. How do you define a human being like this?' After the shooting, Waziri's wife and two young daughters — 4-year-old Bahar and her 9-month-old baby sister, Zoya — flew to Florida to stay with his brother. 'His wife is in very bad condition now,' said Khan, the brother. 'She's still panicking.' Khan and Waziri's wife have yet to tell Bahar that her father is dead. And so, nearly every day, the little girl asks her mother and uncle a string of heartbreaking questions.
Daily Mail
05-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Hero Afghan refugee who helped US forces killed for pettiest reason near new Texas home
An Afghan refugee who courageously aided US Special Forces before fleeing his home country was shot dead over a parking spot in Texas. Abdul Rahman Waziri, 31, was killed in his west Houston apartment building's parking lot during a fight on April 27 at about 9:15pm, the Houston Police Department (HPD) said in a statement. Conflict arose when Waziri pulled into the lot to check his mailbox and the alleged aggressor took issue with where he stopped his car, according to Waziri's family's lawyer, Omar Khawaja. Matters escalated when the man started vandalizing Waziri's car, sparking the fatal altercation, according to witnesses Khawaja said he spoke with. 'After the altercation is already over and Mr. Waziri is walking back to his car, shooter grabs a gun and murders him. He executes him in cold blood,' Khawaja said, ABC 13 reported. The father-of-two was rushed to the hospital and pronounced dead as investigators probed the scene. Police said the alleged shooter approached them and admitted responsibility. He was questioned and his gun was taken away. But after the HPD consulted with the Harris County District Attorney's Office, he was not immediately arrested or charged. A spokesperson for the department told he could not release the suspect's name due to the ongoing nature of the investigation. Waziri's family is devastated and outraged the man who took his life was able to walk free. Now, they are demanding answers. 'We believe this was a public execution. There's no other way to call it,' Khawaja said. Khawaja gathered outside the HPD alongside Afghan community leaders and Waziri's heartbroken brother, Abdullah Khan, for a press conference on Friday. 'The killer is still out on the streets, he has not been arrested,' Khawaja said, Click2Houston reported. 'There have not been interpreters from the Houston Police Department sent to this community where this murderer resides - who still lives in the same area as the victims.' The Harris County District Attorney's Office told it is waiting for the investigation to be completed before any charges are filed. In the meantime, everyone at the apartment complex is on edge knowing the alleged killer is on the loose, according to Khan, Khawaja and the community leaders. 'The whole community is thinking, if this is happening to us, then what should we do?' Afghan leader Omar Yousafzai asked. Waziri fled Afghanistan when the Taliban came into power. While living in his native country, he worked with the US Army for seven years, according to a GoFundMe. He was a part of the National Mine Reduction Group (NMRG), which is an Afghan unit that worked specifically to protect American troops from Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDS). 'He was a hero,' Afghan-American community leader Nisar Momand declared. Waziri decided to move to America in pursuit of a better and safer life for him and his family. Waziri died just outside his home, where he moved to escape the Taliban's regime in Afghanistan (pictured: the apartment complex where Waziri lived) The 1208 Foundation, a veteran-led nonprofit for former NMRG members, started another GoFundMe in Waziri's name, writing they 'cannot let his death be met with silence.' Between the two donation pages, more than $25,000 has been raised to support Waziri's nine-month-old, a three-year-old and a grieving widow. 'He came here to be safe,' Khan said. 'But here is not safe for nobody.'
Yahoo
23-04-2025
- Yahoo
Houston crime: Man caught on camera beating elderly disabled man charged with new felony while out on bond
The Brief Trayvion Lockridge, who was out on reduced bond, is now charged with aggravated assault involving a gun. He was previously caught on video beating a 67-year-old man with Alzheimer's. His co-defendant remains jailed; defense calls new charge "bad faith." What we know HOUSTON - A man previously charged in the brutal beating and robbery of a 67-year-old man with Alzheimer's is now facing new felony charges after allegedly threatening a woman with a gun in a separate incident, while out on bond in the first. Trayvion Lockridge, who was caught on video in December 2023 punching and stomping Florentino Hurtado outside a north Houston grocery store, is now charged with aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. The December 23 attack left Hurtado with serious injuries, including a fractured cheekbone and stitches in multiple areas, according to his family. His daughter, Jessica Hurtado, said then her father was confused and accidentally tried to get into the wrong car. "We're already dealing with a lot of Alzheimer's, and anyone who has family dealing with dementia knows it's a lot," she said earlier. "So the fact that this had to happen is just sad. It's really sad. My father did not deserve this at all." According to charging documents filed April 11 by the Harris County District Attorney's Office, Lockridge got into an argument with a woman outside a convenience store on April 10. He allegedly fired a gun at the ground near her feet and pointed another firearm directly at her. Prosecutors say the woman later identified Lockridge using a news photo. The backstory The new charges come almost exactly a year after Lockridge posted bond and was released from jail. Despite prosecutors initially recommending a $1 million bond following the December attack, a judge set the bond at $50,000. In March 2024, that bond was lowered further to $20,000. Lockridge was released in April 2024. "And of course, he gets out and now he's wanted again," said Andy Kahan with Crime Stoppers of Houston. "You've got the main culprit who not only has his bond reduced, gets out, but now has another violent felony as well – you really can't explain that." Lockridge's co-defendant in the December incident, Derodrick Stephens, has remained behind bars with his bail denied. The other side Defense attorney Perry Bass, who represents Lockridge, says the new charges are not credible and believes his client is being falsely accused. "I don't think he has any firearms or ammo. If somebody did that, it was somebody else," Bass said. "We don't think it's a credible complaint – it's bad faith." He says he has reason to believe the complaining victim in the 2025 case is connected to Stephens and has been harassing Lockridge. When asked if Lockridge will turn himself in, Bass replied, "we're going to work on it, we'll get it processed." FOX 26 reached out to the Harris County District Attorney for comment on the status of the 2023 case and have yet to hear back. The Source Charging documents filed April 11, 2025, video footage of the 2023 assault, 2023 victim's daughter Jessica Hurtado, Andy Kahan, Crime Stoppers of Houston, Perry Bass, Defense attorney for Trayvion Lockridge
