Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1919-06-02

fatally wounded, dying later and one other
man was wounded, at o'clock Sunday
morning at Ranchita, fifteen miles up the
Rio Grande, when two unknown men open
ed fire from the outside on a little iacal
in which a gambling game is alleged to
have have been i'm progress.
The dead.
CARLOS ESPARZA, deputy sheriff.
DOMINGO TREVINO, a laborer
PEDRO ZEPEDA, a laborer
The wounded:
Nicolas Esparza
Deputy Sheriff Harold Jefferds. who
with Deputy Sheriff Andres Cueto, investi-
gated the shooting, said that owing to the
intense excitement in the neighborhood, the
officers had been unable to gain definite
story Of the shooting
1t appears that Esparza, Trevino. Zepeda
and number of other men were in little
building and that gambling game was in
progress. Between this house and another
house there was an areaway about five or
six feet wide. Firing was opened from
the outside into the jacal where the party
OF men were playing, and Carlos Esparza
was struck by a bullet from 45-calibre
revolver The bullet went through his head.
entering at the left ear. The light in the
room was then shot out
The men in the house then made mad
effort to escape, and shooting that followed
revealed that two men had been stationed at
points of vantage on the outside. Trevino
In running out, turned TO the left and was
struck in the head by bullet from a 5000
rifle, and the top Of his head was shot off.
Had he turned the other way with the other
men he would probably have escaped with
his life- Zepeda, one of the last to get
-out Of the room, was struck by buffet That
entered at his hip and appears to have rang
ed upward, but did not pass out. He died
from this shot, although he was struck by
another bulelt in the chest Nicolas Es-
para was shot in the leg, but the wound
is not serious
Zepeda died Mt his home near the scene
of the shooting at o'clock Sunday after
noon.
When the room had been cleared of its
occupants, the murderers entered the house
where the game had been going on and
gathered up the green cloth There was
about one hundred dollars on the table
They also went through Esparza's pockets
and took his watch but left the chain. Ire
vino's clothes were also gone through. his
pockets being found turned inside out Ze-
peda's clothes were also emptie6 of small
amount of money. He was unconscious at
the time.
So far as Identities are concerned. the
murderers are shrouded in the deepest
mystery. No one in the neighborhood was
found who had seen men who might have
done the shooting. The officers followed a
trail that led to the Rio Grande, and found
evidences that three men had crossed at one
point They also found an old army shirt,
with blood over it. II probably had been
cast aside to avoid suspicion on the Mexi-
can side of the river.
The trail to the river leads the Officers
to believe that at least two Of the murder
ers were from the Mexican side Of the riv-
er, but it is believed also that one or more
on the American side were implicated. The
occurrence was reported to the officials on
the Mexican side and an investigation there
has been ordered.
OF the men killed, Carlos Esparza was
the best known. He has been an officer
on this part of the border for many years
and for some time was mounted customs
inspector. In enforcing the law in that vi
cinity he is said TO have made many enc
mics, and Officers are of the opinion that
while robbery may have been one reason
Tor the bloody crime, that the main motive
was to get" Esparza. The other men met
their deaths, officers believe, Just because
they happened to be present There is also
suspicion among officers that the recent
arrest and extraditon to the United States
OF Antonio Rocha and Perdo Paz. both Of
whom were wanted on this side of the river
for murder in the vicinity of Sundays kill
ing, may have had something to do with
yesterdays crime Rocha was killed at
Reynosa, Mexico, just before his delivery to
Sheriff w. T. Vann of Brownsville, in an
attempt to escape. Paz is now in Jail in
Brownsville
Carlos Esparza about three years ago was
attacked frcm the brush in the same vicin-
ity and his horse was shot dead under him.
He escaped without injury. Several other
attempts on his life had been made nj var
lous times. lie is said to have dropped his
Usual care following the death Of Rocha.
whom he most feared, it is said
The men inside the house were given no
chance for their lives The firing opened
without the least warning and none of the
men i'm the house had the slightest oppor-
tunity to defend themselves
Deputy Charlotte McGovern acting sher-
iff in the absence Of Sheriff w. T. Vann