Man shot to death inside west Houston parking garage may have been targeted
HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- The murder of a man in a parking garage may not have been a random act, according to police.
Police say the victim lived in the adjoining apartment complex and before the murder he told his girlfriend he was going to meet another person in the garage.
The victim is Sam Kyle James, 31, and he may have known the person who killed him on the third level of the parking garage at this apartment complex in the 600 block of Dairy Ashford.
The Domain West apartment complex has working gates at its garage entrances and around the clock security, but none of that stopped the murder of James.
Police say James lived here and he was going to meet someone in the parking garage. He was later found dead from a single gunshot wound to the head.
Initially, police said it was likely a carjacking, but they later added that James' car was not stolen.
Neighbors woke up to police cars in the garage and detectives combing the area for clues.
Those who live here say it is typically a safe place, but the gates are not foolproof.
Resident Billy Gutierrez said, "If you tailgate someone, you probably could get in just like anywhere else, but you do need a fob to enter the facility and the area."
Police say the victim was found in a parking spot on the third level. CPR was in progress when paramedics arrived, but James died at the scene.
The murder comes as a shock to those who live in what they describe as a quiet complex. Residents are worried someone violent may have a way to get into their building.
"There is a security guard who is always walking," said resident Kristina Coronado. "You have a key fob to get in and out, so obviously it is someone who knows somebody who has access."
The victim's family was too distraught to speak with ABC13, however a relative of the victim's girlfriend said James was a nice man and treated his girlfriend very well.
Police say surveillance video shows multiple suspects in a 2005 light-colored four-door Acura leaving the complex after the shooting.
