'Waiting in the shadows': 11-year-old playing 'ding-dong ditch' shot dead by homeowner who had large weapons cache: Cops

A Texas man with a large cache of weapons is accused of shooting and killing an 11-year-old boy who allegedly was playing the "ding-dong ditch" doorbell prank, according to authorities.

The Houston Police Department said in a statement that officers responded to a report of a "fatal shooting of a juvenile male" around 10:55 p.m. Saturday.

Police reported that gunshots are heard on the video, followed by audio of the boy gasping.

The shooting victim was rushed to an area hospital, but doctors on Sunday pronounced the child dead.

Authorities identified the shooting victim as 11-year-old Julian Guzman, who reportedly was playing a "ding-dong ditch" prank. Participants in the prank ring a home's doorbell or knock on the door and run away before the occupant answers.

Investigators said the shooting victim and his 10-year-old cousin were at a family gathering nearby before they walked a block away to play the "ding-dong ditch" prank.

"Officers were told that Guzman was ringing doorbells of homes in the area and running away," the Houston Police Department stated. "A witness stated Guzman was running from a house, after ringing the doorbell, just prior to suffering a gunshot wound."

Houston Police Department Homicide Detective Sgt. Michael Cass told CBS News that the suspect was "waiting in the shadows in his own side yard behind a fence" after the victim and his cousin began playing the prank — doing so three times in a span of 15 minutes.

But by the third ding-dong ditch attempt, police said "the cousins ran as fast as they could, but the homeowner was waiting behind the fence in his yard," according to the news network.

Police said the incident was recorded on Guzman's cell phone.

Police reported that gunshots are heard on the video, followed by audio of the boy gasping.

'What harm could they have done? Playing with a doorbell?'

The Houston Police Department named the shooting suspect as 42-year-old Gonzalo Leon Jr.

On Monday, the Harris County District Attorney's Office charged Leon with murder.

On Tuesday, officers with the Houston Police Department's SWAT unit and a Criminal Apprehension Team located Leon and his packed car at a hotel in La Porte, Texas.

Leon was arrested and booked into the Harris County Jail, according to online records.

RELATED: California man convicted of murdering 3 teenagers after 'ding-dong ditch' prank that included 'mooning'

Sgt. Cass noted that the children were "not threatening in any way" and that the shooting did not seem to involve self-defense because it "wasn’t close to the house."

Cass told KHOU-TV, "In my opinion, it does not look like any type of self-defense."

Legal analyst Carmen Roe added to KHOU, "From what we know, it is difficult to imagine a homeowner reasonably believing children playing a centuries-old prank posed a legitimate threat."

While executing a search warrant at Leon's house, investigators found a handgun and 20 other firearms, plus tactical and smoke grenades, police said.

"Looked like he may have been a collector of firearms," Cass said.

Leon is an Army veteran who was deployed and spent time in the reserves, police told CBS News, which added that his defense attorney at his Wednesday court appearance said Leon was disabled in combat and honorably discharged.

Neighbors were shocked after a child's prank resulted in tragedy.

"What harm could they have done? Playing with a doorbell? That’s the part that really kind of hurts the heart," one neighbor told KHOU. "For someone to shoot him in the back, they knew they were a kid. What’s the purpose of it?"

Another resident added, "Kids are just being kids. I feel like we’ve all played 'ding-dong ditch.'"

One neighbor claimed to have seen a group of children pranking homes in the neighborhood on the day of the shooting.

"I warned them that they shouldn’t be doing what they were doing, that it was dangerous, and they had two minutes to go and leave the property or I would contact the police," the neighbor stated. "They knew that they were doing something wrong."

One resident claimed that "an innocent life" was taken, but it could have been avoided if parents taught their children "what’s right and what’s wrong, and it’s wrong to knock on somebody’s door playing a prank."

A number of recent "ding-dong ditch" pranks resulted in unfortunate outcomes.

• As Blaze News reported in May, a Virginia homeowner was charged with murder after a high school senior was fatally shot as he allegedly played the "ding-dong ditch" game.
• In January, four juveniles reportedly did the doorbell prank at a home in Missouri, after which the homeowner chased them with a sawed-off shotgun but didn't fire it.
• In July 2024, a Maine man fired 14 rounds at teens who had played the "ding-doing ditch" prank.
• Blaze News reported in August 2023 that a Delaware state trooper was suspended for allegedly beating a 15-year-old boy after the teen played the "ding-dong ditch" game at the officer's home.

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