A Texas neighborhood was shattered after an 11-year-old boy was gunned down while playing a ding-dong-ditch prank, and police say the shooter had been waiting in the dark with an arsenal of weapons.
Veteran guns down child over ding-dong-ditch game
The Houston Police Department reported that officers rushed to the scene of a shooting around 10:55 p.m. Saturday night following calls about a juvenile victim.
The boy, later identified as 11-year-old Julian Guzman, was rushed to a nearby hospital but was pronounced dead the following day. An autopsy confirmed the cause of death as a gunshot wound.
Authorities explained that Guzman and his 10-year-old cousin had left a family gathering just a block away when they decided to prank the neighbors.
The prank that the child was killed over is known as “ding-dong-ditch,” a game where participants ring a doorbell or knock before running away.
According to investigators, Guzman rang several doorbells before approaching one particular house multiple times.
“Officers were told that Guzman was ringing doorbells of homes in the area and running away,” Houston Police said.
“A witness stated Guzman was running from a house, after ringing the doorbell, just prior to suffering a gunshot wound.”
Detective Sgt. Michael Cass explained that the suspect, 42-year-old Gonzalo Leon Jr., had positioned himself in his yard, hidden behind a fence, and was lying in wait for the children.
“The cousins ran as fast as they could, but the homeowner was waiting behind the fence in his yard,” Cass said.
Authorities said the incident was captured on Guzman’s own cell phone, which recorded the sound of gunfire followed by the boy gasping for breath.
The Houston Police Department later confirmed that Leon was the shooter. By Monday, the Harris County District Attorney’s Office charged him with murder.
Suspect allegedly tried to flee
Two days later, Houston SWAT officers and a Criminal Apprehension Team tracked Leon to a hotel in La Porte, Texas.
His car was packed with belongings, suggesting he was preparing to flee the area.
He was taken into custody without further violence and booked into the Harris County Jail.
Sgt. Cass told local outlets that the children posed no threat and the confrontation did not resemble an act of self-defense.
“In my opinion, it does not look like any type of self-defense,” he said.
When police searched Leon’s home, they discovered a disturbing cache of weapons.
In his possession was a handgun, 20 additional firearms, tactical equipment, and smoke grenades.
“Looked like he may have been a collector of firearms,” Cass noted.
Leon, an Army veteran, had previously served on deployment and in the reserves before being honorably discharged. His attorney said he had been disabled in combat.
Investigators also revealed Leon was married and had a young child at home. He had initially been released before the case was reclassified as a homicide investigation.
A Houston judge later set Leon’s bond at $1 million. Prosecutors have already moved to upgrade the charges from murder to capital murder.
Assistant District Attorney John Brewer said that “There’s always an opportunity to upgrade a case if the evidence warrants it.”
Ding-dong-ditch shooter allegedly waited for pranksters to come back
Harris County District Attorney Sean Teare described what investigators believe to be a chilling premeditated act.
According to Teare, Leon deliberately hid near his home, waiting for the boys to return.
Guzman’s cousin told police he saw Leon emerge from a gate, firing a shot into the ground before aiming directly at them.
The cousin said the two boys were playing the game simply because they were “bored” at a birthday party earlier that night.
After the shots rang out, the cousin said he watched Julian collapse, crying for help and claiming he couldn’t feel his legs.
The boy also reported that Leon calmly walked back into his home as the children tried to escape.
“This was someone brutally murdering an 11-year-old simply because they were mad,” Teare told KRIV.
“We have a little boy who didn’t even have a chance to get his life going yet, struck down for nothing.”
Teare added, “He shot him down and went about his business.”
The district attorney also said that anger-fueled gunfire results in senseless deaths, noting the prank the boys were playing is one that has been around for decades.
In court, Leon’s defense attorney, Gianpaolo Macerola, reminded reporters, “I know that he’s innocent until proven guilty based on the Constitution.”
Leon is slated to return to court on October 11, where he will likely face a grand jury trial.
