San Antonio police arrested a 13-year-old boy this week in a deadly shooting on the city's West Side. The boy now faces a capital murder charge. Police say he is tied to the death of Marcus Rene Nolf Estrada, 20.
The shooting happened more than a year ago. Nolf Estrada was killed the night of June 9, 2025. He died in the 300 block of Otter Drive. That street sits near Loop 410 and Highway 90. It is a quiet stretch of homes on the far West Side. The boy was only 12 years old that night.
This case shows how deadly gun violence has hit even young kids in San Antonio. A child this young facing the state's most serious charge is rare. It raises hard questions about guns, kids, and crime on the West Side. Neighbors are left asking how a middle-school-age child ended up tied to a killing. The case also shows how long a homicide can sit open before police make an arrest.
Officers found Nolf Estrada in the driver's seat of a car. The car had crashed into a house on Otter Drive. Medics rushed him to a hospital. He died there from more than one gunshot wound. The Bexar County Medical Examiner ruled his death a homicide.
Police said three people ran from the scene on foot that night. Officers used SAPD's Eagle helicopter to search from the air. K9 dogs searched on the ground too. Officers could not find the three suspects that night. The case sat unsolved for more than a year while detectives kept digging.
Then, on Monday, SAPD arrested the 13-year-old boy. He was picked up on a warrant for capital murder by terror threat or other felony. That is a long legal name for a serious charge. It gets filed when someone is accused of killing a person during another serious crime. That other crime could be a threat. It could also be a separate felony. People close to the case say the boy has not been formally charged in court papers yet. Police have not released his name because he is a minor.
KENS 5 reports the man was killed with an AK-47-style rifle. That is a powerful, military-style gun. The case file is sealed because the suspect is a child. Because of that, the Express-News has not been able to confirm the weapon detail through police records.
The boy appeared in juvenile court on Monday. At that hearing, his family had not yet been told about the arrest, according to KSAT. A judge ordered him held in juvenile detention. His next hearing is set for August 25 in front of Judge William "Cruz" Shaw.
Juvenile court records stay sealed from the public in Texas. That means few new details will come out unless the boy is certified to stand trial as an adult. That has not happened in this case. For now, his name, his statements, and most case details stay out of public view. Judges use these closed hearings to decide where a young suspect is held and what happens next in the case.
Police have not said if they plan to arrest the other two people who ran from the shooting that night. The investigation stays open. SAPD has not said what led to the shooting. Police also have not said why Nolf Estrada's car crashed into the home that night.
For now, the case moves through the juvenile system. It took more than a year for police to make an arrest in this killing. The suspect is a middle-school-age boy. He is too young to be named in public court records. West Side neighbors are left waiting for more answers as the case heads toward the next hearing on August 25.
