Teen charged with murder of man on New Year's Eve

HOUSTON (FOX 26) - A 19-year-old woman charged with murdering a man on New Year’s Eve could appear in Harris County Court as early as Wednesday. Meanwhile deputies are looking for other suspects in the shooting that occurred on the 100 block of Mizell Street.

Deputies say the murder victim is Joshua McKinney, 19.

The homeowner says he went over a couple times a month to play video games with her grandson. She never imagined the horror that she would witness on New Year’s Eve.

“Josh come beating on the door saying someone was after him,” the homeowner Gloria Chaplin says.

Gloria Chaplin was startled awake at 4 a.m. by Joshua McKinney’s knock.

“And then he ran back out, and just a sec- it all happened between 4 and by 4:30 the police were here. It all happened so quick,” Chaplin says.

The Harris County Sheriff’s Office arrested 19-year-old Yvonne Ramirez and charged her with murder in McKinney’s shooting death.

Deputies tell FOX 26 they know Ramirez did not commit the murder alone. They’re currently interviewing people and looking for other suspects as neighbors wait for answers.

“I don’t know anything about what was going on or anything, but you could see the guy’s body laying in the other man’s driveway over here,” says neighbor Sammy Pitrucha.

Chaplan says she’d never seen the car load of people who rolled up to her house minutes before the shooting.

“I didn’t know them. I didn’t even see- there was so many bullets flying. All I did was duck in the house. I didn’t even see it happen.”

Deputies say Ramirez and McKinney knew each other and it’s unclear whether they were dating.

Deputies say Ramirez and her accomplices had stolen guns from McKinney on a prior occasion and were allegedly bringing the guns back to their victim to sell them back to him when the shooting happened.

Here’s what Chaplin had to say about the murder victim.

“Oh he’s a sweet guy, and he was good mannered, and he always said ‘thank you’ and ‘please’ and when he’d eat he’d help me with the dishes. I mean he was a nice guy,” Chaplin says.

Chaplan says she heard 20 to 30 gun shots total.

Deputies say suspect Ramirez was shot as well, treated at a hospital, released and then charged with murder.

Family and friends of the victim say he had planned to join the Marines after graduating college.