Exchange of gunfire at gender reveal party wounds 5 people at Fort Worth home
An argument over a handgun that a man brought to a Fort Worth gender reveal party provoked an exchange of gunfire that injured five people including the suspect, a detective wrote in an arrest warrant affidavit.
The suspect, 22-year-old Jose Garcia, was attending a gender reveal party for a friend’s baby on Saturday night in the 5200 block of Shackleford Street, police said.
Other guests at the party became concerned when Garcia kept “adjusting and displaying” the handgun that was in his waistband, according to the affidavit. One man told Garcia that he needed to put his gun in his car because there were children present at the party.
Garcia got angry at the man and threatened to shoot him, witnesses told police. Other guests escorted Garcia out of the backyard where the party was being held. After they passed a wooden gate to the driveway, Garcia cocked his gun and pointed it at a man, the affidavit states.
The man who was threatened told police that he feared for his life and he pulled out his own handgun to defend himself. The man said he wasn’t sure whether he or Garcia fired first, but there was an exchange of gunfire.
Garcia fired in the direction of the yard, where four people were wounded, the affidavit states. Investigators believe that the other man fired in self-defense and shot Garcia.
Garcia fell to the ground, but he left the chaotic scene before officers responded, according to the affidavit. Police later found the suspect at a hospital, where he arrived in a private vehicle.
The other shooting victims were two men and two women in their 20s, according to a police report.
One victim underwent immediate surgery for a gunshot wound to the head, police said. Other victims received treatment for gunshot injuries to their legs, a foot, and a graze wound.
Garcia also needed surgery, according to the affidavit. He faces a charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon.
