A man police say gunned down a woman outside an Austin-area gas station last week has been charged with murder, and the woman’s family says the killing should be investigated as a hate crime as she was targeted because she was gay.
Akira Ross, 24, was fatally shot Friday night while she pumped gas in Cedar Park, 20 miles north of Austin, according to the Cedar Park police. She died at the gas station, and the shooter fled in a vehicle.
Cedar Park police identified Bradley Stanford, 23, as the suspected shooter. He was arrested Sunday in Inglewood, Texas, near Corpus Christi, more than 200 miles away from where the shooting happened.
Stanford was being held in the San Patricio County Jail on one count of murder before he was transferred Wednesday to Williamson County, officials confirmed. The San Patricio County Sheriff’s Office said an attorney is not yet listed for Stanford.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
“Our initial investigation revealed Stanford and Ross did not know each other,” Cedar Park police said in a statement.