AUSTIN (KXAN) — A second person was arrested and charged in connection with the death of a 17-year-old, which police say happened as a result of a drug deal turned attempted robbery in a parking garage near The Domain last year, according to police and court documents.
Carlos Sotelo, 17, died in December 2024, at a hospital after he was shot during what police called an attempted robbery in the parking garage of a north Austin apartment complex.
Joseph Geathers, 21, was charged with capital murder by terror threat/other felony in connection to Sotelo’s death, according to a Travis County arrest warrant affidavit.
KXAN is working to reach out to an attorney representing Geathers to request commentary on the charge. We will update this story if we receive a response.
Dedric Verse, 18, was previously arrested and charged with capital murder in connection with the shooting. Details about his arrest can be found in previous KXAN coverage here.
The shooting happened in the early morning hours of Dec. 13, 2024, in the parking garage of the Griffis at The Domain apartments, located at 3210 Esperanza Crossing, according to police. Sotelo was in the passenger side of a vehicle when he was shot, and the driver took him to Saint David’s North Austin Medical Center after.
Austin Police Department officers responded to a 911 call from a hospital security guard, who said Sotelo arrived at the hospital in a private vehicle.
APD’s investigation found that Sotelo and other people were in a vehicle in the parking garage when multiple suspects approached the victims and attempted to rob them at gunpoint, and when the driver of the vehicle tried to flee, the suspects fired into the vehicle, hitting Sotelo.
The affidavit said two suspects fled the scene and got in a white 2024 Toyota Corolla, which was parked outside the garage with its lights off with a driver waiting inside.
Through surveillance video, social media, and text message records, APD identified Geathers as the “getaway” driver of the Corolla, according to the affidavit.
Geathers told police he didn’t know that a robbery was going to happen and that he thought they were just purchasing marijuana, however, police found text messages that indicated Geathers was aware of a planned robbery, according to the affidavit.
Geathers was booked into the Travis County Jail on Feb. 13 and is being held on a $750,000 bond, according to online jail records.
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