Shooter who wounded girl in road rage case remains on the loose

HOUSTON (KTRK) -- A five-year-old girl is still recovering from a gunshot wound she got during a road rage incident.

"She still cries at night, like she's scared," Nayeli Garza's mother, Maria Garza, explained.

Nayeli was home from school, not feeling well on the day Eyewitness News visited with her and her mother. She has spent a number of days at home since she was shot on July 29.

"I just started screaming, just screaming. I was like, why her? Why my daughter?" Garza recalled of the moments when she realized her daughter had been shot.

The kindergartner and her two-year-old sister were riding in the back seat as their father drove. It was 10:30 at night. They were heading southbound on Highway 288 when another vehicle cut them off. Their father honked. He told Houston police the other car slowed down, got behind them and then fired. The bullet went through the door, through Nayeli's car seat and into her hip.

"Went all the way to the other side. She still has a bullet in there. They're not going to take it out," her mother said of the wound.

Nayeli has had two surgeries and bladder issues because of it. Maria Garza is focused on her recovery but she also wants someone to be held accountable.

"Probably didn't even know they shot her. Probably thought (their father) was all alone in the car," Garza speculated.

She is going public and showing her daughter's injury in hopes of finding the shooter. The girls' father only saw that the person was driving a "dark vehicle."

Anyone with information about the shooting is urged to call Crime Stoppers at 713-222-TIPS (8437). Tipsters can remain anonymous and information leading to an arrest could earn up to $5,000 in reward money.