Family of Slain Texas Teen Tracks Down Suspect using Social Media

HOUSTON (CBS News)- The teen charged in the shooting of a 15-year-old girl after an apparent hit-and-run in Texas was tracked down by the victim's family using social media accounts, CBS affiliate KHOU reports court documents have revealed.

Victoria Cantu, 15, was found dead in a Whataburger parking lot two weeks ago, according to the station. She had been riding in a car when it clipped another vehicle in a hit-and-run during a car show. Detectives said Gabriel Cantu and the driver of the other car tailed the vehicle Victoria was riding in, hanging out of the window and shooting at the other car's trunk. Victoria Cantu was hit in the back, prosecutors said.

Gabriel Cantu, 18, who is not related to the victim, was charged in the death of the Alief Elsik High School student. Prosecutors said that after the shooting, Victoria's friends drove her to a nearby Whataburger for help but that it was already too late.

According to the station, surveillance video captured images of the shooter and the suspect's vehicle. Police said the defendant also admitted his crime to others after the fact.

But it wasn't until the victim's family started a Facebook campaign to track down the killer that a tip led authorities to a silver Ford Mustang. Further tips revealed the suspect's name, which unearthed recently-closed Instagram and Facebook accounts, according to the station.

Gabriel Cantu was eventually tracked down near his grandmother's home in Shepherd, Texas, where he allegedly tried to flee into a wooded area. He was eventually captured on foot, according to the station.

Police said the defendant had been asking friends for money to leave the country. A judge set his bond at $250,000.

He remains in custody at the Harris County Jail, authorities told the station.