A neighborhood on edge

The parking garage at the Aldrich 51st Apartments in Mueller was quiet Monday, the hush broken by the occasional car door and the low murmur of neighbors trading updates. Less than 24 hours earlier, the garage had been the scene of a fatal shooting that left two men dead. Just blocks away, along a creek off Lovell Drive, another young man was found shot to death days before. In the span of three days, three people were killed in the same East Austin neighborhood, and the community is unnerved.

Austin Police Department detectives are investigating all three deaths. Police said they do not believe the cases are connected at this time.

What happened

The most recent killings unfolded in the parking garage of the Aldrich 51st Apartments, where officers found two Black men with life-threatening injuries. They were pronounced dead at the scene. The victims have been identified as 24-year-old Shamar Roach and 32-year-old Kendrick Parker.

According to Austin police, the confrontation in the garage appears to have started as a child custody dispute involving Parker and Roach and another group. The altercation turned physical, and another man shot Parker and Roach. The suspects fled but were later detained; police have not released their identities.

Separately, officers responding to a welfare check on April 18 found the body of 21-year-old Angel Santos-Martinez near a creek on Lovell Drive. Police said he had been shot and that his remains appeared to have been there for some time. Suspects in that case remain at large.

Community reaction

In Mueller, a master-planned district of parks, retail, and apartments built on the former airport site, residents described feeling alarmed by the cluster of violence. Some said they are not accustomed to this kind of disruption, noting that the garage shooting shattered what they perceive as a typically calm area. Several neighbors recounted hearing a barrage of gunfire and said they are more cautious moving around the complex at night. Others worried about what the two incidents, so close together, might signal for safety in a community known for its busy sidewalks and family-friendly events.

That unease lands amid broader shifts in East Austin, where rapid redevelopment has reshaped the streetscape and the mix of who lives there. Reporting on demographic change notes that Austin’s Black population has fallen below 10% and declined over the last two decades, with longtime Black residents moving to surrounding suburbs under pressure from rising housing costs and displacement, trends especially visible in East Austin, according to InTheBlackNet.

The bigger picture on violence

Citywide, Austin’s homicides have trended downward from a pandemic-era peak. Local tracking shows the city recorded 88 homicides in 2021, 75 in 2023, and 70 in 2024, with 50 reported as of mid-November 2025, according to Yahoo News. The Austin Police Department has pointed to investigative gains as part of that picture. The department reported a 100% clearance rate for the 75 homicides committed in 2023 — the first time since 2005 it cleared every case, the City of Austin said.

Investigators have credited community cooperation for that milestone. “We feel this achievement is a reflection of our community who cares about justice and holding their fellow citizens accountable for taking the lives of others. This in turn has helped make our community a safer place,” said Nathan Sexton, APD Homic Sergeant.

APD has also rolled out targeted enforcement strategies to address persistent hotspots. The department launched a Place Network Investigation in Northeast Austin aimed at chronic problem locations, coordinating with regulators and partner agencies on inspections, seizures, citations, and arrests to curb violent and nuisance activity, according to the City of Austin.

Housing-focused efforts have shown promise as well. A pilot Crime Free Multi-Housing program that certifies properties meeting safety standards and encourages collaboration among tenants, managers, and police led to an estimated 70% drop in calls for service at one complex, AustinPost reported.

What this means for Austin

The killings in Mueller — a custody dispute that turned deadly and a creekside shooting that remains unsolved — underscore how personal crises and targeted violence can erupt anywhere, even in neighborhoods known for their amenities and bustle. Residents said the rapid succession of deaths has unsettled daily routines, from walking dogs at dusk to parking after dark.

At the same time, the city’s broader homicide trend and APD’s recent clearance record suggest investigators are closing more cases and that multi-pronged strategies — from hotspot crackdowns to property-level safety upgrades — are becoming more common tools. Those efforts are unfolding amid the demographic churn of East Austin, where old and new communities intersect and where trust between residents, landlords, and police can determine whether problems are spotted early or spiral into tragedy.

In the days ahead, detectives will continue piecing together what unfolded in the garage at Aldrich 51st and along the creek off Lovell Drive. For now, neighbors are navigating the uneasy quiet that follows sirens, waiting for answers and for a sense that the rhythms of life in Mueller can return to normal.

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