An 18-year-old has been charged with murder in the March shooting death of a 19-year-old man outside a Fort Worth after-hours venue after investigators said a tip helped identify the suspect and led authorities to the firearm allegedly used in the killing.
Jayden Garcia was arrested in connection with the death of Lyndon Clay, according to court records. A warrant charging Garcia with murder was issued on May 22. He also faces an aggravated assault charge causing serious bodily injury, according to court documents.
Fort Worth police responded at about 3:40 a.m. on March 1 to reports of gunfire in the 1200 block of Northwest 35th Street, where officers found Clay suffering from a gunshot wound to the chest outside a venue being used for an after-hours gathering. Clay, 19, was pronounced dead at the scene.
Police said between 100 and 200 people had gathered at the location when an altercation broke out and spilled into a parking lot, where gunfire erupted. Investigators collected more than 100 spent shell casings of multiple calibers across the area.
Two other people were wounded and treated at area hospitals. One victim was struck in the face while leaving the venue in a vehicle, according to an arrest affidavit.
Surveillance footage reviewed by investigators showed an altercation inside the venue before shots were fired outside. According to court documents, video captured two men fighting with another pair before gunfire began near a grassy parking area.
In April, Fort Worth police received a Crime Stoppers tip naming Garcia as the shooter, according to the affidavit. The tipster told investigators Garcia had been “boasting about killing the victim” and still possessed the firearm used in the shooting.
The tipster told police Garcia claimed jewelry had been stolen during the party, prompting him to retrieve a gun from his vehicle. Garcia allegedly said he fired a warning shot before others fired back, after which he “unloaded two full magazines and saw the victim go down.”
Detectives said they corroborated details from the tip through surveillance footage, witness information, and vehicle records. Garcia was identified in a video at the venue before the shooting, and investigators tied a Buick registered to him to the area shortly before gunfire erupted.
On May 8, investigators executed a search warrant at the home of Garcia’s grandmother, where Garcia was living, according to court records. Police said Garcia led investigators to a Glock 9mm handgun stored in a bedroom closet.
When investigators asked whether there were additional firearms in the residence, Garcia allegedly told them, “This was the gun that killed the guy,” according to Fox 4 KDFW.
Authorities said a firearms laboratory examination later linked a bullet recovered during Clay’s autopsy to the recovered Glock.
Clay had served in the Marines as a lance corporal and was preparing to start a new job in Dallas, according to a fundraiser set up for funeral expenses.
Investigators said they continue working to identify other gunmen involved in the shooting.
A murder charge is an accusation, and Garcia is presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court. It was not immediately clear whether he had retained an attorney.
Garcia had been previously arrested in 2023 in connection with the accidental killing of a friend, CBS News Texas reported.
