Man shoots girlfriend point-blank in head and drops her off at hospital, TX cops say
A Texas man shot his girlfriend of 13 years in the head, dropped her off at a hospital and ran away, according to Houston-area investigators.
The woman and her boyfriend, 29-year-old Ledarrius Keyontrai Gaines, were watching TV in the living room of their apartment around 3:30 a.m. on Jan. 27 when things turned violent, according to Harris County court documents.
Gaines accused the victim of cheating on him because she had been messaging another man on social media, she told investigators, documents say. He had threatened her before that if she were to ever leave him or end their relationship, he would kill her, she said.
Gaines went into the kitchen, pocketed a .22-caliber pistol he kept in a drawer and returned to the living room, documents say.
He wrapped his hands around the victim’s throat and squeezed, choked her for several seconds, then released his grip to punch her in the face, she told investigators. Her lip split and chin busted, Gaines threw her to the ground, then picked her up and began choking her again, according to documents.
He heaved her across the living room and she landed face down on the couch, documents say. She felt the barrel of Gaines’ .22 pressed against the back of her head. He pulled the trigger.
The bullet penetrated the woman’s skull, leaving a hole the size of a quarter and a burn mark on the bonnet she was wearing, but she lived, documents say.
Gaines told her to put on shoes so he could take her to a hospital, documents say. He said he was sorry and that it was an accident.
The victim believes Gaines intended to kill her, according to investigators.
The bullet fractured the woman’s skull, “causing fragments to go into the (victim’s) skull to which was displayed in the CT scan imaging,” documents said.
Surveillance video captured Gaines arriving at the hospital with the victim, but he left before officials arrived and authorities. He was later apprehended.
Deputies went to the apartment and were greeted by a trail of blood on the living room floor, more blood splattered on the walls and a .22 caliber shell casing by the couch. In the main bedroom, they found the couple’s two daughters sleeping and unharmed.
Gaines is facing charges of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and assault on a family member impeding breathing, documents say.
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