HOUSTON — For the first time, we’re hearing from the mother of a 12-year-old boy who was shot and killed in east Harris County last week.
For Ashley Rostro, it’s been a difficult and very emotional week. She buried her 12-year-old son, Carols Fernandez, on Monday. Then came news that the man accused of killing him, 27-year-old Terry Bryan Rivera, was arrested at the Texas-Mexico border Monday.
"You know, I prayed to my son that day that he'd help us catch him," Rostro told us. "He's just a coward, honestly, he's heartless."
Wednesday morning, Rostro met with Harris County Sheriff’s Office investigators to learn more about how her ex-boyfriend was captured while trying to cross back into the US from Mexico.
KHOU 11 was the only news station to talk with her after the meeting. Rostro said the seven days that Rivera was on the run, she and her family were on edge.
“We’re just all happy that, you know, relieved that he was caught,” she said. “And also his mom. She had a part in it and it just brought all of us peace of mind.”
We also learned new details about the night Carlos was killed after running to check on his sleeping sisters because he heard a noise.
"He just watched out for everybody, such a caring child," Roster told us.
Prosecutors say Rivera stuck the gun through an open window where the girls were sleeping and opened fire. Carlos was struck and killed.
"He didn't care at all. He shot right into the room where he knew my kids slept, his kids slept, he knew that, so that was very senseless of him to do," Rostro told us.
Thankfully, the girls, who are Rivera's daughters, weren't injured.
The prosecutor said Rostro woke up when she heard a voice that she was 100% sure was Rivera say, "Yeah, what's up, what's up?" before the gunshots.
Rivera called her from a blocked number after the shooting, according to prosecutors. She said she told him, "You were just here," and Rivera replied, "I know I know."
'I have to fight for him'
Rivera faced a Harris County judge for the first time Wednesday morning and she set his bond at $2 million. He's not eligible for the death penalty under Texas law, but prosecutors say they'll ask for life without parole if he's convicted.
Now that Carlos has been laid to rest, his mother is turning her attention to fighting for justice on his behalf.
"I have to fight for him, you know, that's my job," the grieving mother said. "I just wish he was here. I miss him so much, and his sisters miss him."
Mother of accused killer also arrested
Meanwhile, Rivera's mother, Alva Cornejo, will remain behind bars for now. The 51-year-old made her first official court appearance Tuesday morning on a charge of hindering apprehension. Investigators say Cornejo helped her son get out of Harris County after the shooting.
According to prosecutors and HCSO, she met with her son hours after Carlos was killed and he told her what happened. Cornejo initially claimed that she told him to surrender but he took off.
Investigators later found evidence contradicting her story on Cornejo's phone.
"Whenever they reviewed her phone, they found she'd been searching things like, 'How to get to the border of Mexico,' which we know is where Rivera was arrested," Prosecutor Jamie Burro told us.
They also found text messages Cornejo sent someone to ask them to give Rivera a ride, Burro said.
The judge left Cornejo's bond at $25,000. She's also on an ICE immigration hold.
Carlos 'ran to the danger'
The shocking shooting death of Carlos rattled the Cloverleaf community where neighbors are glad Rivera is behind bars
"It's so sad what he did. I just, it's so emotional, like the family just deserves resolution," neighbor Melanie Driscoll told us. "He deserves what he gets."
Carlos was sleeping in the living room and heard a noise so he ran to check on his two younger sisters, who are Rivera's daughters.
"He ran to the danger," Gonzalez said. "He ran to check on his sisters, 6 and 7 years old, to protect them. And in some ways, he did because that bullet could have easily injured one of them."
That's when Rivera filed multiple shots through the bedroom window, killing the little boy, according to HCSO.
The boy's sleeping half-sisters, who are Rivera's daughters, were not hurt. Neither was his mom and her current boyfriend who were sleeping in the same bedroom.
"I don't want everybody to remember Carlos for the senseless tragedy, I want them to remember him for the young man that he was, the protector, the big brother, the big cousin,” Delfino Gonzales, the boy's uncle, told us at his nephew's funeral Monday.
Gonzales said the family is finding strength through the outpouring of love from the community.
"The prayers, the text messages, the phone calls, you guys keeping the story going. I mean, it's just a testament of a community coming together and a city coming together to be there and support, you know, us in this tragic time," Gonzales told us on Sunday.
He described his nephew as a great kid.
"Just very humble, never complained. Every time he was asked to do something, he took care of it. He did it. He was a protector, he always looked after his sisters," he said.