WILD WEST

Houston Family Charged With Murder in Wild Case of Mistaken Identity

Cops said the four were on the lookout for a Dodge Charger. They went after someone driving a Dodge Challenger, instead.

When 39-year-old Florinda Argueta complained to Houston police about her family’s home and car being vandalized, she told them she believed a teen connected to her son’s ex-girlfriend was behind the damage. In one report Argueta filed, she listed a black Dodge Charger as a possible car driven by the suspect. On Monday, her son, 19-year-old Joe Argueta, spotted a dark gray Dodge Challenger—a completely different model—going by, according to ABC13. Cops say he and two male family members gave chase, boxing in the Challenger. As the driver tried to get away, deputies say Joe confessed to shooting at the vehicle until it crashed. The man behind the wheel, 29-year-old Eddie Clark, was shot in the abdomen and reportedly died from cardiac arrest before medics could get him to the hospital.

Joe Argueta was arrested and charged with murder; his mother fled the scene and is now wanted on homicide charges, along with Luis Argueta, Florinda’s husband and Joe’s father, and Joe’s uncle Margarito Alcantar. Clark lives in the same subdivision but the family and he did not know each other, said authorities. He was reportedly headed home when he was gunned down. Joe Argueta is being held on $50,000 bond, according to public records.