A Texas police officer has been arrested in Mexico after authorities there accused him of killing three people and critically injuring the mother of his child in what investigators say stemmed from a dispute over the custody of the minor.
The Coahuila attorney general’s office said ۳۵-year-old Chad Eberle was arrested on Wednesday at the border on a warrant accusing him of femicide and qualified homicide, according to La Razon de Mexico, a newspaper based in Mexico City. Under Mexican law, femicide refers to the intentional killing of a woman or girl because of her gender.
According to La Razon, the deadly shooting happened in July in Saltillo, Mexico, after an argument over Eberle allegedly not having permission to take his three-year-old son. Two women and one man were killed in the attack.
The victims were identified by La Razon with the first names and ages of Ana Laura, ۴۴; Laura Jaquelín, ۲۲; and Emanuel, ۴۴. The child’s ۲۶-year-old mother was also shot in the head and remained in critical condition, officials said.
Investigators said Eberle was arrested while attempting to cross from Mexico into Texas through the international bridge at Piedras Negras, across from Eagle Pass, KTXS reported. Eberle had left the residence with his son in a gray Chevrolet Silverado, prompting investigators to launch a manhunt as they tracked the vehicle toward the Texas border, the US Sun reported.
He was then intercepted before he could re-enter the US with the child. The three-year-old was unharmed and was later placed in the care of Coahuila’s child welfare agency.
The San Antonio Express identified Eberle as a police officer in the central Texas town of Santa Anna. Before that, he worked as a deputy constable with Bexar county – which includes San Antonio – and also served as a police officer for the Northside independent school district.
The Express reported that Eberle also held law enforcement positions in the Texas communities of Somerset, Marble Falls, Gregory, near Corpus Christi, Lockney in the state’s panhandle, and Bangs in the west. According to the newspaper, a ۲۰۲۲ Facebook post from the Lockney police department described Eberle as an army veteran.
In a social media post on Thursday, Coahuila attorney general Federico Fernández said: “It is reported that at [۹.۵۹p] Chad ‘N’ has been admitted to the Saltillo men’s penitentiary in compliance with [an] arrest warrant, where he has been placed at the disposal of the competent judicial authority, in accordance with the corresponding procedure.”
He added: “Likewise, the minor is already in the city of Saltillo, under the custody and care of the prosecutor’s office for boys, girls and the family (Pronnif), in order to guarantee the comprehensive protection of his rights.”
Texas news outlet Coleman Today obtained a statement from Santa Anna city officials which described Eberle as “one of our reserve officers … [who] was on a personal leave of absence until December.
“The Santa Anna police department has been in contact with the US consulate in Mexico and [the Texas commission on law enforcement].”
That statement also said Eberle was “an unpaid reserve police officer hired in November ۲۰۲۵ and worked one weekend per month.
“Due to the ongoing investigation, no other public comment will be made.”
