A Texas man has been charged with murder for allegedly leaving a Houston restaurant, going outside, and shooting a fake parking attendant that scammed him out of $40 — then returning to his dinner date.
Erick Aguirre, 29, allegedly told his date that "everything was fine" and that he had just scared the scammer, 46-year-old Elliot Nix, on April 11.
Nix had reportedly told Aguirre that it would cost $20 each to park his and his date's vehicles, which he paid.
“There was a waiter who knew that the guy was scamming people for parking, and he advised them, ‘Hey, that guy is scamming you for parking,’” Rick DeToto, the attorney representing Aguirre's date, told local station KPRC.
At this point, Aguirre went out to confront the scammer.
The report states, "employees of EaDo Glass and Smoke then watched Aguirre sprint to his car, grab a pistol, and chase after Nix. He then allegedly fatally shot Nix and left his body on the side of Chartres Street."
The witnesses watched Aguirre return the gun to his car before returning to the Rodeo Goat burger joint, where his date was waiting. A witness said he saw him "nonchalantly walking back to his car with the gun in his hand."
When he returned to his date, Aguirre began to walk to the table before deciding to take her to another restaurant.
“She knows that he was upset, and he went after the person that allegedly scammed them, but they went to have dinner, and at some point, the defendant said he was uncomfortable with the restaurant and they left,” DeToto said.
When police arrived at the scene, Nix was unresponsive. He was transported to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Aguirre's date reported him to law enforcement after they released images of the couple on their date. She maintains that she did not know what Aguirre had done.
“She wanted to do the right thing. She wanted to make sure that she came forward and told the police what she knew,” DeToto said.
Aguirre's bond has been set at $200,000. He remains in jail at the time of publishing.
