Houston man arrested in teen's murder

HOUSTON -- Police have arrested a 20-year-old man in the death of a 16-year-old girl.

Police say Patricia Rangel's body was found in the backyard of an empty house near downtown Houston Wednesday morning. The 16-year-old had a gunshot wound to the face, police say.

A roofer found Rangel when he showed up to work on the home in the 1500 block of McKee.

On Thursday, Houston police arrested 20-year-old Keith Allen Kupferer, and charged him with Rangel's murder. Police say Kupferer and Rangel had a relationship.

Rangel's death ended Houston's streak of 10 days without a murder.

Houston Police Chief Harold Hurtt said his officers can't remember a single week in the past decade where there hasn't been at least one homicide.

"The murder rate is nearly impossible to control or predict in any city," said Hurtt.

Year-to-date, there have been 233 murders reported in the city, compared to 242 during the same time period last year – a 4.13 percent decrease.

If the current pace of homicides continues through December, Houston's murder rate will fall for a third straight year.