A Texas All-Star high school cheerleader is in critical condition after police say she and three other cheerleaders were shot at during an altercation with a man in a grocery store parking lot.
On Monday, April 17, just after midnight, Stony Point High School cheerleader Payton Washington and her three teammates were returning home from an out-of-town cheer practice at Woodlands Elite in Woodlands, Texas. The girls had left their cars in the parking lot of the local grocery store, H-E-B, and were carpooling to a cheerleading competition.
Heather Roth allegedly made the mistake of mixing a man’s car for her own, she tried to get in the car before noticing the man in the passenger seat. Roth allegedly realized her mistake and turned away to find her actual car.
Police say that 25-year-old Pedro Tello Rodriguez Jr. was in the other car with a gun, and he fired multiple shots at the girls following a brief altercation.
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Roth was grazed by a bullet and Washington was shot in the leg and the back.
“It was a harrowing night for all four of those girls,” Woodlands Elite Cheer Owner Lynne Shearer told FOX 7.
“It was a harrowing night for all four of those girls.”
One cheerleader was treated and released at the scene. Washington was airlifted to a local hospital and is recovering in the ICU.
Despite being shot, Washington’s friends and family have no doubt that she will make a full recovery.
“She literally was born with one lung, so she from the very beginning as a baby, she wasn’t even expected to survive, let alone, excel in athletics, so she’s surpassed a lot of things already,” Shearer said.
HEB – Here Everything’s Better – Grocery store in the city of Houston. HEB is an American supermarket chain based in San Antonio, Texas (iStock)
Shearer described Payton as one of the strongest athletes to ever come through her gym.
“She’s literally an icon in the world of all-star cheerleader. I mean, definitely at our gym, but literally all around the country she has so many little kids look up to her.”
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“She’s literally an icon in the world of all-star cheerleader.”
This weekend was supposed to be a big one for Payton, her last All-Star Cheerleader World Championships.
“She’s won every title there is to win in All-Star cheerleader except for a world title, so that makes this super heartbreaking for her,” Shearer said.
Police identified the suspected gunman as 25-year-old Pedro Tello Rodriguez Jr. He is charged with deadly conduct, a third-degree felony. (Elgin Police Department)
On Tuesday, April 18, the Elgin Police Department arrested Rodriguez. Police shared that he left the H-E-B parking lot after the shooting, and officers worked through the night to find him.
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He was charged with deadly conduct, but additional charges may be filed.
