2 teenagers charged in deadly shooting at Alief-area apartment over alleged love triangle

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Authorities say a teenage suspect, driven by jealousy, partnered with a friend to execute a man he believed was involved with his girlfriend. However, prosecutors now say the victim was not the intended target, despite what was written in court records.

Last week, the family of Marcos Cottto Torres, 41, insisted to ABC13 that he was innocent when he was shot in his sleep at his Alief-area apartment.

Christopher Portillo Luna was arrested on Thursday.

The 17-year-old joined Fernando Amaya, also 17, behind bars. Both teens are accused of murdering Torres. Court records suggest the attack stemmed from a love triangle involving Amaya and his teenage girlfriend.

The shooting happened around 1 a.m. on March 18 at the Alief Square apartments on Cook Road. Torres was found dead inside the residence, where chunks of the wall are missing and plywood covers the shattered windows. According to court records, Amaya and Luna used an AK-style rifle, firing 84 rounds at Apartment 227. The gunfire also injured Torres' roommate.

After the attack, the teens fled the scene in a white SUV, Houston police said. Amaya was arrested later that day.

In their motion for a high bond, prosecutors revealed a motive, that Amaya "threatened to kill himself and his juvenile girlfriend for cheating on him with the male who he later murdered," the motion reads.

On Tuesday, the DA's office corrected that, telling ABC13 Torres was not the intended target, and that it's believed an 18-year-old who lived with Torres, was who the teens were going after because he was allegedly messaging Amaya's girlfriend.

ABC13 spoke with Torres' sister. She maintained that her brother led a quiet life with no social connections, insisting on his innocence. She said she and her family are "completely devastated."

Both Luna and Amaya have been charged with murder and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon for the roommate's injuries.

Additionally, Amaya has been charged with aggravated assault for allegedly holding his girlfriend, whom he accused of cheating, at gunpoint. He is being held on bonds totaling $1,150,000.

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