A 23-year-old man is accused of fatally shooting a father in a dispute over a space in a parking lot at Walmart, according to local police.
Christopher David Hernandez got into an argument with a 32-year-old man—later identified as Joshua Lazard—outside of a Walmart in Houston on Saturday afternoon, and the dispute quickly grew violent, according to a press release from the city.
The two men parked in the same row and walked toward the store, the press release said. That is when Lazard allegedly confronted Hernandez over his driving, telling him “You don’t know how to drive,” a witness said, according to a report from local news station KTRK-TV.
Hernandez, who has no criminal history, then allegedly pulled out a handgun and shot Lazard “multiple times,” according to the city’s press release. He then walked into the store, where he was detained by local police officers. He has since been charged in the shooting.
Lazard was taken to a local hospital and later airlifted to Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead, according to officials.
On Sunday, a judge set Hernandez’s bond to $300,000 and called him a danger to the community because there were several bystanders around him when he allegedly shot Lazard, according to KTRK. He was able to post bond on conditions of house arrest with an ankle monitor and not being allowed to drive or possess any weapons.
Lazard’s wife, Itasca Dickson, told the news station that she “didn’t think my best friend was going to be gone.”
“If it’s something as stupid as a parking spot, come on,” she said. “I’m sure that man has a family, so why would you shoot somebody over something so small?”
Dickson also spoke about how Lazard’s death will impact their three children.
“I can’t make these children be men by myself. That wasn’t my responsibility. That was his,” she said.
Police continue to investigate the shooting, and anybody with information is asked to contact them by calling (713) 308-8800. Newsweek reached out to Walmart for comment.
Walmart, a popular supermarket chain across the United States, has seen several shootings at various locations in recent months. On August 21, four customers were injured after a gun slipped out of a man’s waistband and accidentally fired in Lovejoy, Georgia. All of the victims’ injuries were non-life-threatening.
In May, an employee and a customer were shot by a shoplifter as they tried to stop him from fleeing the store in Hamilton, Ohio. While the worker suffered serious injuries, the customer died. Two people were also injured after being shot in a Walmart parking lot in Waukegan, Illinois, in February following an “altercation,” local police said.