TYLER — A Tyler man who was shot in the head Sunday night at a local shopping center has died.
According to the Tyler Police Department, Bradley Brockman, 45, died Wednesday night at a Tyler hospital.
Brockman was in critical condition after he was shot at the Westwood Shopping Center, located at the intersection of South Southwest Loop 323 and Chandler Highway.
According to the arrest affidavit, witnesses said a man, who police have since identified as Kristian Perdomo, 25, of Tyler, wearing a red bandana and a black hoodie approached Brockman. Witnesses then reported hearing a gunshot and seeing Brockman fall.
According to witnesses, Perdomo left in a car that headed north on Loop 323. Police were given the license plate number of the vehicle and later pulled over and arrested Perdomo on Highway 64, near Loop 49. The affidavit says the license plate had been altered.
Inside the vehicle, officers found a receipt for .380 ammunition, dated November 28, 2018, from a local pawn shop. Officers also located a tablet, cell phone and a receipt for the cell phone.
According to the affidavit, police discovered the car had been registered to Perdomo's mother. When police talked to Perdomo's mother, the affidavit says she told police he was currently living at her home. She also told police the room he was staying in was "usually locked." She was the registered owner of the car, but allowed her son to drive it, according to the affidavit.
During, police discovered Perdomo was a member the "Bloods" street gang (Nortenos or North Side Bloods).
Perdomo's original charge of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon has been upgraded to murder. Prosecutors have also tacked on the charge of unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon.
He remains in the Smith County Jail on a $1.25 million bond.
RECENT HOMICIDES
Brockman's passing comes on the heels of four recent shooting deaths across the area.
During a Monday afternoon press conference, Smith County Sheriff Larry Smith said investigators have a "high level of confidence" Perdomo was involved in the additional homicides.
"I believe we have the right person in custody," said Sheriff Smith. "And we do have that high level of confidence, but we don't want to misspeak until we let the evidence speak for itself."
Following the press conference, officials announced the Texas Department of Public Safety crime lab linked the gun used to injure and ultimately kill Brockman to the other recent fatal shootings of:
Mario Guzman - December 7
Jhoel Sevilla - December 9
Benny Jackson - December 10
Jerome Jones - December 15
PRIOR LEGAL TROUBLES
According to Smith County judicial records, Perdomo was charged with eight felonies between 2010 and 2012, five of them resulting in convictions.
Perdomo's latest conviction was for robbery and unlawful possession of a firearm by a felon in April 2012. He pleaded guilty and received four years in prison.
Other felony convictions included engaging in organized criminal activity (February 2010) and two separate charges of assault causing bodily injury (March 2011 and July 2011).
