12-year-old charged in fatal shooting of Texas woman

HOUSTON – A 12-year-old boy was arrested and charged in the fatal shooting of a 51-year-old woman in suburban Houston.

Sharon Hawkins was found Saturday with multiple gunshot wounds in a bedroom at an apartment complex in the Greater Greenspoint area of Harris County, the Houston Chronicle reported.

The boy, whose name has not been released because he is a minor, was charged with murder and aggravated assault with a deadly weapon through the Harris County Juvenile Probation Office. Police spokesman Kese Smith said authorities arrested the boy Sunday.

Police initially believed he was a witness. They say he lied when he told investigators that he spotted a suspect leaving the apartment dressed in all-black clothing.

Smith said he could not say whether the boy knew the woman.