Man sentenced to 35 years in prison for fatal Edinburg shooting

A 40-year-old man was sentenced Wednesday to 35 years in prison for shooting a 24-year-old man in the head in 2021.

Hidalgo County District Attorney Terry “Toribio” Palacios announced the sentence for Miguel Angel Mujica, who has been on trial since Sept. 15, in a news release.

The jury found him guilty on Tuesday, court records show.

Mujica was charged with murder and unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon. His cousin, 37-year-old McAllen resident Elizabeth Saenz Mujica, is also charged with murder for the killing. She has pleaded not guilty.

The pair are charged with the murder of Milton Rodriguez on Oct. 7, 2021.

Probable cause affidavits for their arrests indicate that Mujica was immediately identified after the shooting by a tenant of the apartment where Rodriguez was killed. Saenz is accused of buying him the gun, driving him to the scene, helping him flee and then hiding the gun in her purse.

The shooting followed an argument between Mujica and Rodriguez at the apartment in the 2300 block of Mojave Street that day.

“Mike walked out of the apartment and Milton walked out shortly after. Milton and Mike began to fight outside the apartment,” the affidavit stated. “The juvenile witness observed that Mike pulled out a black gun and he ran to tell others.”

That witness was a 12-year-old boy.

Elizabeth Mujica, 34, of McAllen is arraigned by Edinburg Municipal Court judge Toribio “Terry” Palacios on Sunday, Oct. 10, 2021, in Edinburg. Her bond was set at $500,000. (Delcia Lopez | dlopez@themonitor.com)

“Elizabeth implicated herself by purchasing the weapon for Miguel, using her car to give him a ride to the apartment, waiting in her car, witnessing the murder, and helping Miguel flee the scene in her car,” the affidavit stated. “Elizabeth also disclosed that she concealed the weapon in her purse and stayed hiding with Miguel until he was arrested.”

Palacios, the district attorney, said he hopes the verdict brings some closure to Rodriguez’s family.

“It is always a tragedy when a life is taken unnecessarily and a family is left behind to pick up the pieces,” Palacios said in a statement. “I hope this verdict brings some measure of closure to Milton’s family and serves as a reminder that our office, along with the people of this community, will not tolerate senseless acts of violence.”

As for Saenz, she remains held in the Hidalgo County Adult Detention Center on a $250,000 bond.

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