Inset: Anthony Cerda (Houston police). Background: Convenience store in the 7800 block of Canal Street in Houston, Texas (KTRK).
In a disturbing incident in Texas, a man allegedly forced entry into the residence of a 90-year-old by removing an air-conditioning unit from a window and proceeded to stab the elderly gentleman multiple times with a screwdriver.
Authorities have charged Anthony Cerda, 34, with capital murder following the death of Francisco Chura. According to Houston police, the tragic event unfolded on August 20, 2025, when officers were dispatched to Cerda’s home on Canal Street, responding to reports of a stabbing. Chura was transported to the hospital by paramedics but succumbed to his injuries on September 7, 2025.
The arrest affidavit reveals that Cerda allegedly launched his attack while Chura was asleep in his home, which is connected to a long-standing convenience store he owned. Cerda reportedly assaulted Chura by jumping on him, repeatedly punching, and stabbing him with the screwdriver. Investigators documented that Chura sustained numerous “small circular stabbing wounds,” and the blood-soaked bed sheets provided grim evidence of the brutal assault.
Detectives observed that a safe within the home was open and emptied, suggesting that the motive behind the murder was robbery. Additionally, a blood-stained, bent screwdriver was discovered at the scene.
Chura recounted to detectives his harrowing experience, explaining that he pretended to be dead until the assailant fled. He then concealed himself in the bathroom until daylight before seeking assistance from a neighbor. Chura reported that approximately $3,000 in cash was stolen from his safe and described the suspect as having long hair.
About two months after the stabbing, detectives saw a man with long hair hiding in a crawl space at a home near the crime scene, the affidavit said. He was seemingly trying to hide from police. The homeowner identified the man as her nephew, Cerda. She said he would sometimes stay at her home when he needed a place to live.
She said Cerda would often go inside the store and Chura would sometimes loan him money. He was in the store a day or so before the homicide, per cops. She called Chura’s death “such a sad story” and told police that they needed to “get to the bottom of it.”
Cerda told detectives he did not kill Chura and said he never had been inside the store.
Detectives spoke with another witness who said he went to the store on the night before the slaying but the door was locked. Chura let him inside and recounted how he gave money to a man who then returned a second time and demanded more cash. Chura refused and “kicked him out.” The witness asked who the man was but Chura declined to tell him.
In January 2026, cops interviewed a man who spoke with Cerda after the alleged murder. He said they were hanging out and getting high together when Cerda allegedly stated “I killed Pancho,” which is Chura’s nickname.
The big break in the case came when DNA results came back earlier this month. A lab determined the screwdriver had DNA from two people: Chura and Cerda.
Police obtained an arrest warrant for Cerda on Friday. He was already in the Harris County Jail on an unrelated charge. He is slated to appear in court on Monday.
A neighbor told local ABC affiliate KTRK that Chura was well known in the neighborhood and often helped people in need.
“Everybody grew up with him,” the neighbor said. “Everybody was surprised when that happened.”