County officials say Littlefield murder suspect posted aftermath video of victim on social media.
Lamb County officials tell KCBD the suspect in the murder of 17-year-old Jasmine Rodriguez posted a video on social media showing the aftermath of the shooting that happened on Friday, July 31 in Littlefield.
The video has since been removed from social media.
On Monday, officials released the probable cause affidavit for the murder of Rodriguez.
Around 6:45 a.m. on Friday, July 31, Littlefield Police were called to the 700 block of West 3rd Street for a disturbance.
The affidavit says 18-year-old Joseph Moron told his grandmother to call police after the gun was fired. She told police “a person shot themselves and blood was everywhere.”
When they arrived, they found Moron in the bedroom with Rodriguez. Rodriguez was on the floor and had been shot in the head. He told investigators that he and Rodriguez were the only two people in the bedroom.
He denied knowing where the firearm was and insisted Rodriguez shot herself with it. A search warrant was obtained and investigators did not find the gun or shell casings or any sign of the bullet which had been fired.
Moron was taken into custody as a person of interest and interviewed. Moron asked to take a polygraph exam. Investigators reported Moron’s story changed multiple times. The examiner also said he was not truthful on three questions. We do not know what those questions were.
However, the affidavit does say during the test, the examiner asked if he put the gun to Jasmine’s head, he said that was true. He was also asked if the gun went off and if it surprised him, he said that was true.
The examiner then asked Moron to write a letter to Jasmine Rodriguez.
The affidavit states the in the letter, Moron mentions that “he never meant to hurt her and sometimes he gets mad and does stupid things.” The letter goes on to say that he “was sorry that he hurt her terribly bad and that he only meant to scare her.”
The initial report stated Jasmine was taken to University Medical Center by Littlefield EMS. It is not clear if she died on the scene of the shooting or at the hospital
Joseph Moron, 18, was arrested, charged with Rodriguez’ murder, as well as tampering with evidence. He is currently being held in the Lamb County Jail.
The Littlefield police chief said they’re going to treat the investigation as a homicide until they know more.
Littlefield Police say there have been about four homicides since 2017 and they have about only one call a year about shootings in Littlefield.
An account at AIM Bank has been set up to help with the expenses for Jasmine Rodriguez. If anyone would like to donate to the account, you can go to any AIM Bank location and make a donation under her name
