A Hidalgo County grand jury has formally charged a 19-year-old Alton man with three killings. The dead are his mother, his father and his grandmother. All three were shot inside their own home.

The indictment against Gaurav Chopra was filed with the district clerk on September 8. It carries three counts. It clears the way for the case to go to trial.

This is an update to a case El Tejano has followed since the night it happened. El Tejano reported on July 8 that a judge denied him bond: https://www.eltejanorgv.com/judge-denies-bond-for-alton-man-accused-in-triple-family-killing/

Count one is capital murder of multiple persons. It names the three people who died: Minder Kaur, Kamlesh Rani and Sweeta Ram. The grand jury says all three were killed during the same crime.

Ram was 56. Rani was 46. They were Chopra's father and mother. Kaur was 73. She was his grandmother.

Count two is attempted capital murder of multiple persons. The grand jury says Chopra meant to kill all four family members. That includes his brother, Sachin Chopra. It says he fired a gun in his brother's direction and failed.

Count three is evading arrest with a vehicle. The grand jury says he ran from Alton police Sgt. Osvaldo Zamora in a car.

Court records list no bond at all on the capital murder count. Bond is set at $250,000 on each of the other two counts.

Capital murder is the most serious charge in Texas law. It can mean life in prison with no chance of parole. It can also mean the death penalty.

What deputies say happened

The shooting happened the night of June 16. A sworn complaint by Sheriff's Investigator Fernando Olivarez lays out what deputies say they found.

Deputies were called out at about 9:27 p.m. Alton officers had gone to a disturbance call about a white car. They chased that car. The chase ended in a crash. Chopra was taken into custody there.

Officers then went back to the first call. Inside the home they found three people who had been shot. Two were already dead. The third was rushed to Doctors Hospital at Renaissance. He died there.

At the scene, officers found a witness. It was Sachin Chopra.

He told investigators he was walking up the stairs when he saw a set of legs on the ground. He said his brother walked toward him and pulled out a gun with his right hand. He said Gaurav pointed it at his head and fired one shot. It missed. He said his brother chased him around the house. He got away.

Investigators found live rounds and spent shell casings at the house. The complaint says they matched the caliber of a gun. That gun was found in the car Chopra was in when he was arrested.

Autopsies at the Hidalgo County Forensics Center found all three died from gunshot wounds to the head. All three deaths were ruled homicides. Investigators also got video. It backed up what the witness and the suspect did as they left the house after the shooting.

The fight over bond

Chopra has been in the Hidalgo County jail since that night. His lawyers went to court to try to get him out.

They filed a writ of habeas corpus. That is a filing that asks a judge to review whether a person is being held legally. They argued there was no probable cause to keep holding him. They asked for release or a bond he could pay.

The hearing started July 1 before Judge Keno Vasquez of the 398th District Court. He set a $250,000 bond on the attempted capital murder count. He kept a separate $250,000 bond on the evading arrest count. He took the capital murder count under advisement. That means he wanted more time. He gave that answer on July 6. He denied bond on that count.

At the hearing, prosecutors played dashcam video. It showed a white Lexus leaving the subdivision. It showed a chase that hit about 100 mph. The car hit a power line, then hit another car. Testimony at the hearing was that the other driver went to the hospital.

Sgt. Zamora testified about the chase. Eduardo Aleman, a crime scene specialist with the sheriff's office, testified about the search of the car. He said investigators found a gun under the front passenger seat. They also found $12,666 in cash.

The defense said nothing proved Chopra was a danger to anyone. They said the only thing proven was that he ran from police. They asked for house arrest instead of jail.

The judge said Chopra looked like a flight risk. He pointed to the chase and to the large amount of cash in the car.

Still no reason why

Hidalgo County Sheriff Eddie Guerra said all three victims were shot in the head. He said Ram owned a business in Palmview and was known for helping people who needed it.

Guerra said Chopra made allegations during the investigation that were "not accurate." Deputies have never given a motive.

Chopra was a student at the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley.

Alton Police Chief Mark Perez said officers had never been called to that home before that night.

What happens next

Chopra stays in the Hidalgo County jail. With the indictment filed, the case is set up to go to trial. No trial date has been set.

Three people from one family are gone. A fourth got out of the house alive. Almost three months later, nobody has said why.

Everyone is presumed innocent until proved otherwise.