SAN MARCOS, Texas — The man who allegedly shot and killed Officer Justin Putnam and also shot two other San Marcos PD officers has been positively identified by the Texas Rangers.
The Texas Rangers have identified Jose Alfredo Perez DeLaCruz, 46, as the person who shot and killed Officer Justin Putnam and wounded Officers Franco Stewart and Justin Mueller on Saturday, April 18 during their response to a 911 call for domestic disturbance at Twin Lake Villas Apartments, located at 2917 Hunter Rd.
“We continue to extend our thanks and appreciation to the Texas Rangers for their diligent work on this case and to our neighboring law enforcement jurisdictions and the community for their support and assistance as our SMPD family recovers from this tremendous loss,” said Interim Police Chief Bob Klett.
Klett said the initial call was that DeLaCruz had hit his wife, that there were other possibly endangered people inside the apartment and that alcohol was involved. Officers knew one victim was outside and that there were probably more inside, so they entered the residence. As they entered, DeLaCruz ambushed them and began shooting immediately.
The shootout led to the death of Officer Putnam and hospitalized Officers Stewart and Mueller. Officer Justin Mueller was discharged from the Ascension Seton Hays hospital on Wednesday, April 29, and Officer Franco Stewart was discharged on Thursday, April 30, after being treated for gunshot wounds from an ambush on April 18.
A procession for Officer Putnam was held on April 20, where people lined up or parked on the side of Interstate 35 from Austin down to the Thomason Funeral Home in San Marcos to pay their respects.
According to SMPD, DeLaCruz was an undocumented immigrant from Mexico and had been in the United States since the late 1990s. SMPD said there was not an additional criminal record for DeLaCruz and the case remains active.
Tax exempt donations for the wounded officers and for the family of fallen Officer Putnam may be submitted online at https://www.smcpaaa.org/donations-putnam-mueller-stewart. Donations may also be mailed to: San Marcos Police Dept., 2300 S. IH 35, San Marcos, TX 78666, ATTN: Tammy Strakos. Please make checks payable to SMCPAAA.
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