Teen jailed after drive-by shooting
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Cotulla suspect surrendered to deputies
A La Salle County teenager surrendered to law enforcement and was taken into custody last week in connection with an apparent drive-by shooting that took place outside a rural residence in mid-April.
Investigators have indicated they believe an argument that began in the lunchroom at Cotulla High School escalated to gunfire in Dilley on Thursday, April 14.
Frio County deputies say the argument, which stemmed from one boy deleting another from a popular social media platform, escalated to deadly conduct.
“What appears to have started out as a meet-up for a fist fight led to shots being fired and lives being placed in danger,” Frio County Chief Deputy Peter Salinas said. “We must hold these young people responsible, as schoolhouse disagreements escalate to the point that guns become involved.”
“We as an entire community must have a zero tolerance for this,” Salinas added.
According to the sheriff’s office, deputies were dispatched to County Roads 4602 and 4604 in Dilley shortly after 10 p.m. when several calls regarding gun shots were made to the emergency dispatch desk.
Officers arrived to learn that a white Chevrolet Tahoe sport utility vehicle carrying six individuals had driven from Cotulla to the residence along the county road and that the vehicle occupants had planned to engage in a fight.
During the course of the investigation and various witness interviews, deputies learned that the suspect, 17-year-old Thallan Olivarri, and his passengers had left the vehicle, walked down a dirt road parallel to the property line and then ran back to the SUV. The driver then reportedly steered the Tahoe in a U-turn and three shots were fired towards the victim’s home.
Witnesses told investigators that Olivarri was behind the wheel of the vehicle when he rolled the passenger’s side window down and fired three shots towards the victim’s residence.
Deputies charged Olivarri with a third-degree felony for deadly conduct discharging a firearm and a warrant was issued for his arrest on Monday, April 25. Olivarri turned himself in to the Frio County Sheriff’s Office the following day.
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