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Ruben Montoya Cantu’s Background

Ruben Montoya Cantu was born in San Antonio, Texas, on December 5th, 1966, to Aurelia and Fidencio “Fred” Cantu. He was the fourth of five children.

His parents divorced when he was 14. After the split, Cantu’s mother moved 20 miles away. She wanted him to come with her, but he declined. He continued living with his dad in a trailer in a crime-infested area on the south side of San Antonio.

Cantu had several older brothers who had legal issues, and he soon followed in their footsteps.

He got involved with a gang of kids called the Gray Eagles and eventually became a leader of the group. By the time he was 15 years old, he had started stealing cars and driving them across the border for money, which he would blow on video games, movies, and drugs.

Over the next two years, the teen committed one crime after another, but he was never convicted of anything. Feeling invincible, he eventually escalated to murder.

Murder of Pedro Gomez

On November 8th, 1984, At 11:30 pm, 17-year-old Cantu was armed with a rifle, and he and his 15-year-old buddy David Garza broke into a house in San Antonio that was under construction.

Someone had recently stolen a water heater from the home and 25-year-old Pedro Gomez and 19-year-old Juan Moreno were inside, protecting the place to prevent further theft.

Cantu and Garza confronted the sleeping men, woke them, and robbed them of the wristwatches. The teens were about to take the men’s cash, but when Gomez reached for a gun. Cantu started shooting. Gomez was hit nine times and died instantly. Moreno was also hit at least nine times, but he played dead.

After the teens fled, Moreno left the home and called the police. He survived but suffered life-changing injuries.

He was able to give vague descriptions to law enforcement and felt that one shooter was 14 and the other was 19.

The investigation stalls before Cantu is identified

Authorities got a tip from a teacher at South San Antonio that Cantu and two others were involved in the crime.

Cantu, Garza, and a third teenager, I’ll call “James” were brought in for questioning. Cantu and Garza kept their mouths shut.

“James” proclaimed his innocence, but he implicated Cantu and Garza, telling police that Cantu confessed to him. “James” statements weren’t enough for authorities to make any arrests in the case. They needed more evidence.

Just over a month after the shooting, on December 16th, detectives showed Moreno five photos. Cantu was included in the photo array, but Moreno did not pick anyone.

The case looked like it might go cold, but four months after the crime, Cantu shot off-duty police officer Joe De La Luz four times at a bar. Cantu claimed he fired in self-defense after De La Luz revealed he had a concealed weapon.

De La Luz told a different story, saying he was shot for no reason.

The case against Cantu was dropped after authorities searched his home without a warrant.

Detectives investigating the shooting at the under-construction home revived their case after Cantu shot the off-duty officer.

They started to put pressure on Moreno. They showed him a new photo array with Cantu included. Moreno did not pick anyone as the shooter, but he mentioned Cantu’s name.

The next day, Moreno was taken to the station and shown a third photo array that included Cantu; this time, Moreno picked Cantu as the shooter. Moreno later identified Garza as the other person involved.

Cantu and Garza were soon arrested and charged with first-degree murder.

Legal Proceedings

Garza confessed to robbery and got a deal for 6 years, but Cantu wasn’t as lucky.

He went to trial in 1985 with Moreno as the star witness and was found guilty.

De La Luz, the off-duty officer Cantu shot, testified at Cantu’s sentencing hearing, sealing his fate.

Cantu was sentenced to death even though he was under 18 at the time of the crime.

After his conviction, Cantu claimed he was framed because he shot an off-duty police officer.

His attempts to appeal the case and prove his innocence failed, and on August 24th, 1993, the 26-year-old was marched to the death chamber inside the Huntsville Unit in Huntsville, Texas.

He was asked if he had any last words and responded, “No, Sir.” He was injected with a lethal cocktail of chemicals and was pronounced dead within minutes.

Doubts arise about Cantu’s guilt

Years after Cantus’s death, Moreno recanted, saying he only identified Cantu and testified against him because of police pressure.

Cantu’s co-defendant, Garza, also came forward after Cantu’s execution. He admitted to participating in the crime but claimed Cantu was not his accomplice that night; instead, it was “James” the boy police picked up with Cantu and Garza back in 1984.

Garza said Texas “murdered an innocent person.”

Decades have passed since the crime and Cantu’s execution. Some think he was innocent, but we will never really know.