Deputies arrest womans son in connection with her murder near Delta Lake
Teen accused of using life insurance money to buy video games, speakers
Jeremy Roebuck
June 20, 2007 - 7:45PM
EDINBURG Deputies believe the son of a woman found shot to death near Delta Lake last month killed her for money.
They believe he then used the money to buy video games, stereo equipment and paintball supplies.
Christopher Hughes, 17, of Edcouch, was arrested Tuesday in Victoria and charged with the murder of his mother, 44-year-old Laura Hughes Doyle, according to Hidalgo County Sheriff Lupe Treviño.
Deputies found her burned body May 18 in an abandoned hotel located on property she owned with her late husband north of Monte Alto.
I think its pretty obvious why he committed this crime, Treviño said Wednesday. The fact that he went on a three-week spending spree after her death is a pretty good indication.
Treviño would not release Christopher Hughes name Wednesday because the teen allegedly committed the crime as a juvenile and only turned 17 this week. The sheriff only referred to him as Laura Doyles youngest son.
But family members, who otherwise declined to comment on the matter, confirmed the teenagers arrest.
Although he is an adult now, the crime was committed when he was a juvenile, Treviño said. We have to respect that.
Investigators say Christopher Hughes shot his mother three times in the head and at least twice in the torso using a .22-caliber pistol his father had given him as a gift. His mother had never wanted him to have it.
After the shooting, the teen is accused of dragging her body from the trailer home they shared to a nearby trash heap and setting her ablaze. From late April to mid-May, Christopher Hughes continued to live in the trailer home with his mothers body decomposing only yards away.
A lot of body mass was lost due to inclement weather and wild animals including vultures around the property, Treviño said.
During that time, the teen spent more than $7,000 on entertainment items for his car and video game console.
The money, which came from his mothers bank account, was largely made up of life insurance funds collected after her late husbands death. It wasnt clear if her late husband is the teens father, though they all share a last name.
Family members finally reported Laura Doyle missing on April 30.
When deputies arrived on the property to question her son, he told them that she had left for California days earlier, Treviño said.
But investigators found his story suspicious from the beginning.
They found her wallet and some other personal items still in the house, the sheriff said.
A BAD YEAR
Family members said that a decade that had started with the promise of a new beginning for the Doyles quickly deteriorated into tragedy.
Daniel Doyle, Lauras husband, initially brought his family to Hidalgo County a few years ago.
He purchased a plot of land along Farm-to-Market Road 88 near Delta Lake and hoped to renovate the propertys crumbling, three-story mansion, which had once housed a bordello that soldiers from Moore Air Base in McCook patronized during the 1950s.
Soon after moving there, though, doctors diagnosed Daniel Doyle with cancer. He died in February.
In the months after his death, the relationship between Laura Doyle and her son quickly grew volatile.
Deputies responded to several domestic violence calls at the trailer home they shared, where they found mother and son fighting about his drug use and past attempts to steal a family car, Treviño said Wednesday.
In March, Laura Doyle received two years of probation for felony drug possession. She had previously been convicted of reckless conduct, resisting arrest and unlawfully carrying a weapon.
Then, she went missing.
A GRUESOME DISCOVERY
Christopher Hughes story began to unravel on May 18, hours after his older brother Randy Langston, of Victoria, made a gruesome discovery, Treviño said.
Seeking information on his mothers case, Langston traveled from Victoria to check out her home.
Within minutes, he found Laura Doyles burned body, decayed beyond recognition and yards from the decrepit mansion.
Christopher Hughes went to live with family members in Victoria, but many continued to believe the teen bore some responsibility for his mothers death, Treviño said.
As of Wednesday evening, the teen remained in the Hidalgo County juvenile detention center, where he will be held until at least July 4. A judge will then have to decide whether to approve another stretch of confinement.
Treviño said he will work with the Hidalgo County district attorneys office to try the teen as an adult.
If the sheriff succeeds and Christopher Hughes is convicted, he could face life in prison.
Cable Cord Cutters Thread: Sling, Hulu, YouTube TV, Netflix, and more! (5 Viewers)
