Terry Rivera wore an orange jumpsuit during his court appearance a day after being extradited to Harris County.
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Rivera was arrested Monday at the Gateway International Bridge at the border. Authorities say he was attempting to cross back from Mexico into the U.S. after being on the run for a week.
According to multiple sources, Rivera had been in Mexico for several days. The U.S. Customs and Border Patrol released a statement touting the arrest and the vigilant of agents. However, Rivera went unnoticed the first time he crossed the border and managed to evade authorities.
ABC13 spoke to former Texas Rangers Chief Tony Leal, who was also in charge of overseeing border security.
"If they had a suspect with a warrant and identified, all agents would be looking for him between here and the border. The U.S. Marshals, Texas Rangers," Teal said. "Their primary mission is checking individuals coming into the country. Exiting the country, they would be alert, and the person would be red-flagged."
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Because the border is just hours away, it is something authorities have to worry about often when searching for wanted suspects.
"Even if you're wanted, and you get in the trunk of the car with someone who isn't tied to what they're looking for, that car can just drive across and drop you," Teal said.
ABC13 sources close to the investigation also said an anonymous detailed crime-stopper tip helped lead to his arrest.
According to Andy Kahan with Crime Stoppers, law enforcement agencies depend on those tips to arrest wanted fugitives. It's not clear if the tipster will receive the reward money. According to Kahan, it will be determined by their rewards committee and will stay completely anonymous.
Word of the arrest also came hours after Rivera's mother, 51-year-old Alva Cornejo, appeared before a judge. She was arrested and charged with hindering apprehension or prosecution, accused of helping Rivera run from authorities.
"So I believe it could then motivate him with the thought, 'If I go back and turn myself in, then perhaps my mother would be free,'" Leal said.
"I asked for a $5 million bond because he's obviously a flight risk given what we know about last week and him attempting to flee to Mexico, and the judge ended up setting up a $2 million bond," Jaime Burro, with the Harris County District's Attorney's Office, said.
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The 27-year-old is accused of shooting and killing 12-year-old Carlos Fernandez on Monday, March 4, at the Cloverleaf apartment on Alderson Street, where Carlos lived with his mom and two sisters.
According to prosecutors, Carlos' mom was sleeping when she heard a window open.
She claims she heard Rivera say, "What's up? What's up?" before he fired shots through an open bedroom window.
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Rivera is also accused of calling Carlos' mom from a blocked number after the shooting.
Because of state statute, he is not eligible for the death penalty and must have a bond set.
Carlos' family said they were "thankful to Harris County Sheriff's Office and any other agencies involved for capturing Terry Bryan Rivera."